The Promise That I Made With You
by xsleepyheaderz
Summary: Updated! Sakura the innocent student transfers to Seijyu High School and meets Syaoran the malacious punk. Although she doesn't like his cruel demeanor, she gets a job to become his tutor! By doing this, will she see another side of him?
1. Cherry Blossoms Return

**The Promise That I Made With You**

Wow, well I decided to make this fanfiction because "Cardcaptor Sakura" was the first the got me hooked into anime! Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Cardcaptor Sakura or Cardcaptors so please keep that in mind. Thank you!

**Chapter 1**

**Cherry Blossoms Return**

**Sakura's POV**

"Sakura… Kinomoto?" said the principal as she read her report. "Age: sixteen, graduated from Tomoeda Elementary and Eriol Academy… your brother went here too as well…"

"Yes…" I said moving uncomfortably in my chair from uneasiness.

"I am pleased to meet you Kinomoto-san, my name is Mizuki Kaho," said the principal.

"Nice to meet you," I said as I gave a mini bow from her chair.

"Ah, Kinomoto-san… your brother was an idol to all… smart and he was great at sports… you must be proud…" said Kaho. "By knowing about his time here at Seijyu, you know what is to be expected?"

"Yes…" I repeated. Boy, do I sound stupid…

"Hmm…?" said Kaho. "You came from Osaka?"

"Yes," I said. "I went there for two years and then I wanted to go to my hometown from where I grew up and attend the high school my brother graduated from."

"Where is your family working?" asked Kaho.

My chest became tight from those words. The answers had disappeared, but I was determined to not let that have a hold of me. Then I opened my mouth and…

"After… I finished elementary school… we… uh…" I mumbled.

"Oh… I'm sorry," said Kaho sadly. "Am I intruding something?"

"No… it's alright," I said.

"That's good…" said Kaho smiling a little. "You don't have to answer me if you don't want to."

My chest began to release from tightening. I was relieved.

After a few more simple questions…

"Well… I hope I don't get in anyone's way and do the best I can here!" I said bowing.

Kaho beamed. "That's good, Kinomoto-san… I'm sure you'll do well."

I returned the smile.

"Thank you… Mizuki-sensei…"

I sighed in awe as students poured rushed out towards the cafeteria and the campus.

I looked around myself and saw vivid blurs stream around the school… students moving everywhere. Laughing and talking…

I missed that in elementary… before…

"Ah, are you a new student?" asked a kind female voice behind me. I turned around and saw a girl with long dark hair. She smiled and offered her hand.

"My name is Daidouji Tomoyo," said the girl. "Nice to meet you."

I took her hand. "As well as I," I said happily as excitement went through me. "Kinomoto Sakura."

"Well, I'll show you around!" said Tomoyo. "I'll buy you breakfast too if you want!"

"Okay!" I said.

She was one of the kindest people I have ever met… well…

I knew someone before… but I don't remember who it was. Whoever that person was… made me feel happy…

Anyway, I also met Tomoyo's friends who instantly became friends with me as well.

"Wow, you came all the way from Osaka?" said Naoko who nudged her glasses up.

"That's amazing!" said Chiharu.

"Oh… yeah… I guess," I said smiling.

"Here you go Kinomoto-san…" said Tomoyo as she offered me a fresh bun.

"Thank you," I said. She smiled wide.

"Hey, hey Kinomoto-san," said Rika. "May we call you Sakura-chan? You can drop the formalities for us too. After all, we're friends!"

"Okay!" I said happily. Okay, okay… this word…

I sound retarded.

"Sakura-chan… you have a pretty name…" said Tomoyo. "Cherry blossoms…"

"Thank you," I said.

"Cherry blossoms are coming this spring!" said Rika. "You should see our school campus filled with cherry blossoms… it's so beautiful…"

"Yeah…" sighed Chiharu.

They continued to talk about the school events and more about themselves. I was happy that they would instantly befriend me.

Wow… these people are so kind to me. I wonder if everyone is like this at this school…

However… something behind me made me believe that kindness was just a choice.

"Hey you little punk, gimme your money!" shouted a voice behind me.

"Huh…?" I said as I turned around. A twinge of fright engulfed me. But it was…

I saw a big bulky junior grab a little smaller guy by the collar. People crowded near to watch, but gave a fair distance.

"Oh no…" said Tomoyo.

"He's probably a new student as well," said Rika.

"The newbie's dead…" sighed Chiharu.

I stared.

The huge guy looked so mean and buff… but the other guy just smirked.

"That big guy is going to beat up the new student…?" I whispered.

"What?" said Naoko. "That guy isn't a new student. That big guy is."

"That big guy is a new student…?" I said shocked. "What do you mean by…?"

"Just watch," said Tomoyo as she held my hand to silence me.

"So you're being tough?" said the big guy. "I'll show you who's tough!"

"Shut the hell up," said the held guy quietly.

"What…?" said the big guy.

The smaller guy grabbed the big guy's hand. Then he brought the big guy to the ground and slammed his foot on the upper arm of the big guy. There was a sickening crack and the big guy screamed and fell.

(A/N: Big guy, small guy…vague for words eh?)

His arm was oddly shaped and bloody and he lay there gasping in pain.

The smaller guy stood up, dusted off his uniform from his hands and took out a cigarette. He took out a lighter from his pocket and inhaled the smoke as he lit the cigarette.

"You should watch your fucking mouth little boy," said the smaller guy. He stepped on the big guy's bloody arm. He screamed and the other classmates drew away uneasily.

I was horrified.

"'Give me your money?' Huh, you're very brave for a guy with no guts…" he said as he blew the smoke at the big guy's face. "Say that to me again and I'll give you more than a broken arm."

He turned around and walked to the exit with a few guys following him. I guessed they were his friends.

"Who was that guy?" I asked staring.

"Li Syaoran," said Tomoyo. "A junior… but he's eighteen…"

"His mother is really rich because she owns a fashion company," said Naoko.

"He's so…" I started.

"Brutal?" said Chiharu. "That's how he always was here… no one messed with him except for new students who don't have a clue who he is…"

"Anyway… you should watch out for him…" said Rika.

"You make him sound like he's a virus," laughed Tomoyo.

Hmm… he's more like a show-off.

Lunch ended with murmurs about Syaoran. The new guy was hospitalized because the nurse said his hand was severely broken.

But I decided to avert this problem from my head.

"Oh Sakura, you have the same Physics and Math class as me!" said Tomoyo. "I'm so glad."

"Me too," I said.

Physics was… okay…

It wasn't so bad. I mean, at least I had a friend with me, so I was good. But…

Math… Trigonometry… was bad. I had no clue what to do… but Tomoyo helped me with some problems so I had a better understanding.

The school bell rang and the students hurried away to the exit.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo waving as a limousine arrived.

"Oh wow!" I said amazed.

"Tomoyo-chan is rich too," said Rika. "Her mother owns a toy company."

"But unlike some people, she chose the side of being unbitchy," said Naoko. Chiharu laughed. Tomoyo snorted.

"Well bye!" I said waving.

"Bye Sakura-chan!" said the rest as they waved. "See you tomorrow!"

I wore my skates and went towards my house. The wind felt good as it rushed through my face. I was happy.

However… that happiness turned to fear.

I walked on the crosswalk where the light turned to my favor. But there was a speeding car that screeched the street and drove towards me.

I was so stupid. My body froze in shock until I felt someone grab me around the waist and pushed me out of the way.

The guy sped away and I stared at the man who saved me. I couldn't believe it.

It was that Li Syaoran.

"You okay?" he said as he stood up.

"Y-yes…" I stammered.

"You freaking idiot," he said suddenly as he stood up. "Why did you just stand there?" He began to walk away as he took out another cigarette.

"Oh wait!" I said.

He stopped and turned to me. "What?" he snapped.

Whoa… big fat angry tornado coming underway.

"Thank you…" I whispered. Er… I was scared.

"Next time do yourself a favor and move those damn legs… it could really help the people around here," he said sharply as he walked away.

I heard him mutter, "People these days…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hi, Toya," I said as I opened the door.

"What happened to you?" said my older brother Toya as he looked at the scratches on my arms.

"Oh… I fell," I said. "Sorry…"

"Whatever…" said Toya sighing. "Hey, let's prepare dinner."

"Okay!" I said. See? Goody too shoes… Is the word "okay" bothering you?

"I want okonamiyaki…" said Toya. "I'm into fried stuff today…"

"What, I want noodles and soup," I said.

"Okonomiyaki has noodles squirt!" said Toya. "Be satisfied with that."

"Why you… son of a…" I said raising a fist.

"You know…" said Toya nastily. "That bitch is your mom too…"

"YOU'RE DEAD!"

**Next Morning**

**Syaoran's POV**

"Good morning," said Eriol Hiiragizawa as he waved.

"Yo," I said inhaling my cigarette.

Eriol coughed as the smoke reached him. "Can't you do that outside? It's gonna kill us dude…"

"If I do it outside it won't irritate the teachers…" I mumbled as I inhaled again.

"You're such a bastard…" laughed Takashi Yamazaki. "That's what so funny about you… oh, and your face..."

"Man, whatever…" I said as I threw my eraser at his face. He caught it and placed it on my desk.

The school bell rang and first period started. (Ugh… Japanese) Five minutes after the teacher took roll, a girl ran to the class.

I stared.

"Please forgive me, I was lost!" she said as she picked up her Japanese book.

That… girl… I saved next to the street yesterday.

"Kinomoto Sakura… it's alright… you may be seated," said the teacher. The girl bowed and sat next to Eriol who sat at the upper right desk from me.

"Okay… here is our lesson…" said the teacher as she wrote on the board.

That Kinomoto girl was not as stupid as I thought she was. She was good at reading Japanese as well as writing it.

By the way, I had no clue what was on the board.

After the stupid lesson the bell finally rang and I saw Kinomoto bump into Meiling…

Great, it's Meiling the bitch who tears any girl's hearts. Heh…

"Watch it you idiot!" she snapped at Kinomoto.

"I'm sorry," said Kinomoto.

Geez… to a new student too…

I walked to Meiling. "Hey Meiling… what are you doing here?" I said lazily.

"Li-kun I brought you a snack!" said Meiling in a sweet voice.

"I'm not hungry," I said taking out my lighter.

"C'mon Li-kun let's eat together!" said Meiling.

"Oh, you were the one who saved me…" said Kinomoto suddenly looking at me.

"What…?" said Meiling.

"Yeah whatever just don't kill yourself next time," I said.

Kinomoto said nothing. "Let's go eat together Li-kun!" said Meiling ignoring… uh, the other… girl.

"Fine," I said sighing.

"Yay!" she said as she pushed Kinomoto and grabbed my shoulder. We walked to the lunchroom.

I didn't touch the food Meiling brought. Then she began ratting her ass off about her other friends and crap…

"And the she said…" started Meiling.

"Hey Meiling, I'm gonna go," I said as I stood up from the chair

"What? But you didn't even eat…" said Meiling.

"I told you I wasn't hungry… just listen to me for god's sakes…" I said irritated. I gotta admit that Meiling is thicker than that Kinomoto girl.

"See you later…" I said as I walked outside. Meiling just stared at me.

I walked to the cherry blossom trees. Winter will come… and after spring… the cherry blossoms will come. I sighed as I touched the trunk.

This place… calmed me down… no matter what happened.

I looked up at the sky. "Second period probably started…" I muttered. "Heh…"

I took out another cigarette and sat by the tree…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Syaoran… I'm getting you a tutor," said Yelan (my mother).

"What?" I exclaimed. "I don't need one."

"Look at these grades… your Japanese is far behind failure and you're barely passing your other grades!" said Yelan as she placed my report cards on the desk.

Familiar grades of failure met my eyes.

I sat back on my chair. She sensed my careless and added, "If you refuse to raise your Japanese class grade to a 'C' I'll send you to military school."

"NO!" I shouted. "You can't do that to me!"

"Yes I can and I will," snapped Yelan. "By the end of today, I will find you a tutor."

She stood up from her chair. "Now, I'm going to call Sonomi and ask if her daughter can help you," she said.

"I'm not getting tutored by Daidouji," I snapped.

"Fine, then another person…" said mother and she went to her room.

She shut the door as I stared after her. DAMN IT!

**Out of POV**

"Oh it's been so long, how have you been?" said Sonomi as she heard the voice of her old friend.

"Oh… I see… Syaoran needs a tutor?" said Sonomi. Tomoyo came to Sonomi.

"Mother?" she said. Sonomi gave Tomoyo a sign that told her to be silent.

"Oh… I'm sorry… Tomoyo is so busy this year, after all she's the leader of the choir and band… I'm afraid she won't be able to help him…" said Sonomi. "I'm really sorry."

"Oh, okay… I'll help you look, alright?"

"Oh, of course."

"Yes… yes… your welcome… okay… bye…"

Sonomi placed the phone back down. "Mother, what was that all about?" said Tomoyo.

"Oh… you know Li Syaoran… he needs a tutor for Japanese… but because you're so busy I thought you couldn't help him…" said Sonomi.

"Well I pretty am… I'm sorry…" said Tomoyo.

"No… it's alright… we just need to help find one…" said Sonomi.

"Oh wait, I know!" said Tomoyo. "I have a new friend who is great at Japanese! I bet she can help him…"

"Your friend?" said Sonomi.

**Sakura's POV**

"Me? Tutor someone?" I laughed. "I'm not even smart…"

"You're great in Japanese!" said Chiharu. "You had the highest grade on the test!"

"Your point?" I said nervously.

"You're going to get paid Sakura-chan, the guy is really rich," said Naoko.

"A… guy…?" I said nervously.

"Ahaha…" said Tomoyo as she pinched Naoko. "Well… er… he's really…"

"At least you'll be helping your family and it won't bring much stress," said Rika. "And besides, it's like a job, except you might make friends with him."

"You're… you're right…" I mumbled.

Tomoyo and Naoko sighed.

"I'll… I'll try…" I said.

"Great!" said Tomoyo.

Well… they were pretty right about me and Japanese… it's easy a bit for me… but I'm really bad in math…

Oh well… at least I have some talent besides living.

I grew uneasy during first period as I finally noticed that Syaoran sat near to me. I tried to avoid him, but as I turned he looked at me and I quickly turned away.

My second and third period was my physical education and music class which was not fundamentally a challenge to me. My fourth was history, following fifth and sixth, physics and trigonometry (which I had no idea how I got to that level).

Lunch was the most I looked forward too. My friends were so kind to me as though they had known me for years, yet I have only known them for two days, including this one.

School had ended again, quicker than I thought.

"Hey Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo as she held my arm. "I'm gonna take you to your student okay?"

"Uhh… well…" I stammered.

"My mother already talked with your brother… he said it was alright…" said Tomoyo winking. "C'mon."

I went inside her limousine and we drove to an exceptionally large house. "Wow… Tomoyo-chan is this your house?" I said.

"No, but it's similar," said Tomoyo giggling. "This is your student's house."

"He really is rich!" I said in awe.

"We don't lie to you Sakura-chan," laughed Tomoyo.

"Tell the mistress of the house that Daidouji Sonomi has sent you," said Tomoyo. "That's my mother."

"Okay…" I said as I took my backpack.

"Good luck!" said Tomoyo as the driver closed the door and drove away.

I gulped and gave myself a deep breath.

"Okay Sakura… it's for our family… I won't back down!" I muttered to myself. "Be smooth Sakura, smooth… do anything to get it right… even if… even IF IT SENDS YOU TO HELL GOD DAMMIT!!"

I walked to the large house and rang the doorbell.

"Who is there?" said a female voice.

"Ah… uh… Kinomoto Sakura…" I stuttered.

"You may come in," said the voice as the gate opened.

"So much for being smooth…" I muttered angrily to myself as I walked in the door.

"Hello…?" I said as I removed my shoes and wore the slippers.

A beautiful lady at the age around her forties appeared before me. "Kinomoto Sakura… you have come from the request of my friend Sonomi?" she asked, her voice deep, yet kind.

"Yes… Kinomoto Sakura, I am pleased to meet you," I said as I bowed.

She bowed to me as well.

"Li Yelan, pleased to meet you," said the lady.

I stared. Li… you don't mean… _that_ Li…

"Would you join me for a cup of tea?" said Yelan. "My son will arrive shortly."

"Yes ma'am," I said and we sat facing each other on the table, drinking tea.

"May I call you Sakura-chan?" said Yelan. "I hope you won't mind."

"No, it's alright Li-sama…" I said. "It's perfectly fine."

I smiled.

"You are so cute," said Yelan smiling. "You know, you remind me of an old friend I had long ago…"

"I do?" I said blushing.

"Yes, both of you are very bright and pretty," said Yelan.

"Well, I'm not really pretty…" I said. "More like…"

"Beautiful," finished Yelan smiling again.

"Oh, thank you," I said blushing harder.

She beamed. Wow, Yelan is really kind… maybe her son is like her… or well… I hope he is…

"I hope you enjoy 'teaching' my son Japanese," she continued. "He's been struggling for some time on that subject… not really good…"

"Yes, I will try my best to help him," I said bowing.

"That's good," said Yelan. "I will pay you 50,000 yen each day, is that alright?"

"Yes, that is fine," I said surprised from the partially huge sum.

"Hey I'm home," said a voice. It was definitely a guy's voice… maybe it's the same guy I have to tutor.

But wait a minute… that voice… it sounds so much like…

"Welcome home Syaoran," said Li.

OH MY GOD! IT IS HIM!

My eyes widened. "Your tutor is very bright and she will help you well in your Japanese," said Yelan.

"To hell with her," said Syaoran. "Tell her I don't want her pathetic charity."

He looked up and stared at me.

"This is Kinomoto Sakura…" said Yelan. "She will be your new tutor."

**To Be Continued…**

YES! MY FIRST CHAPTER DONE! MUHAHAHA! Err… sorry. Anyways I hope you enjoyed this chapter and another will come soon! PLEASE REVIEW!


	2. First Lesson

Chapter 2 everyone! Enjoy!

**Hey everyone, here is the reposted Chapter 2, and now my story is okay, so I'll gradually try to find my other chapters and post them again. Sorry and thanks!**

**Chapter 2**

**First Lesson**

**Syaoran's POV**

"This is Kinomoto Sakura…" said Yelan. "She will be your new tutor."

I stared at Kinomoto. No… it can't be…

"WHAT? This girl is teaching me?" I said. "You're-you're lying!"

"No, I'm not," said Yelan irritably. "She will come here at five every day, staring today."

"Ah… uh…" said Kinomoto. "Maybe I should leave…"

"No," said Yelan. "Stay Sakura-chan, this is not your fault."

"I am not doing this," I said.

"Yes you have to," said Yelan angrily. "If you don't participate, I will send you to military."

"Damn it Mother!" I shouted. "Why can't you just listen to me?"

She always did this shit! Just like before when "she" died…

I stomped upstairs and slammed my bedroom door behind me.

**Sakura's POV**

I stared.

Yelan sighed. "I'm sorry you had to see that," she said. "Syaoran is easily tempered like that."

Why?

"I don't want to intrude for saying this… but…" I started.

"You ask why?" said Yelan looking at me.

"Uh… yes…" I said.

Yelan sighed. "It's my fault…" she said sadly.

"What? Why do you say that?" I said surprised.

Yelan smiled sadly. "Can't you tell?" she said.

"Huh…" I said.

"Well Sakura-chan, I trust that you have all your needed supplies for his tutoring?" she asked.

"Oh yes," I said as I rummaged through my backpack. "I brought two books… Japanese and Chinese so he can understand it better."

"Hmm good," said Yelan. "Thank you Sakura-chan."

"Yelan-sama," I said smiling.

"Go ahead," said Yelan as she looked at the stairs. "His room is at the right in the end of the hallway."

"Okay!" I said as I walked upstairs.

OK SAKURA THIS IS IT. TUTOR YOUR ASS OFF LIKE THIS DEPENDS ON YOUR LIFE!

I walked to the door and knocked.

There was no reply.

I opened it and saw Syaoran look at me from his couch.

"I didn't say you can come in," he said.

Hmph.

I placed my backpack on the table. "Please sit down here Li-san," I said. I perfected my tone into a calm and quiet manner.

"No," said Syaoran simply. He started to text in his cellphone.

"Will you please sit?" I said my voice strained.

"Are you deaf?" said Syaoran.

That's it.

"Fine, it's too bad," I said in a sarcastic pity. Syaoran looked at me.

"What?" he said.

"I'll just tell your mother that you refuse to get tutored and she'll just have to send you to military school," I said one eye closed.

"You wouldn't," he snapped.

"Try me," I snapped back.

He slowly sat opposite of me.

"Good boy," I said placing my books on the desk.

"What the hell is that?" he said.

"I brought a Chinese book with Japanese," I said. "Your mother said that you had difficulties in Japanese, but you're pretty good in Chinese."

"Not really," he said, taking a glimpse at the Chinese book. He took out a cigarette and began to light it.

"No smoking during the lesson," I said as I snatched his stuff.

Syaoran glared at me.

Yes. He'll just have to accept the fact that I'm in total control.

"Okay, Japanese first," I said as I opened the book. "Let's start easy."

I copied the first sentence of the book on a piece of paper in Japanese.

_Kimi wa dare desuka? (Who are you?)_

"Please read and translate," I said as I placed the paper in front of him.

"I don't know," said Syaoran.

"C'mon you're not even looking," I said irritated.

He took a quick glimpse and went back on his cellphone. "I have no idea," he said.

Oh my god…

I snatched his cell phone. "No cell phones either," I said.

After that, Syaoran paid a little more attention.

"Kimi… kimi wa…dare… desuka…" he read.

"Translate?" I asked.

"Who… uh… are you?" he said.

"Great!" I said. "Okay now a Mandarin sentence."

I made up and wrote a sentence in the piece of paper.

_Zai xue xiao li, wo jiao ir hen duo peng you. (I have made a lot of friends at school)_

"This one," I said.

He looked at it for a bit; it took him less time than the Japanese sentence. "Zai xue xiao li, wo jiao ir hen duo peng you," he read. "I made a lot of friends in school."

"You're good Li," I said.

"Whatever," said Syaoran.

"Okay! More sentences," I said scribbling more.

He groaned.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hey Sakura-chan, how was the lesson?" said Chiharu.

"Actually, it was a bit funny," I said.

"Hm? Why?" said Rika.

"Well… it's just that… I'm younger than him… but I'm tutoring him… it's kind of weird…" I said.

Tomoyo laughed. "Oh, I get you," she said as she played with her salad.

I took out my sandwich and bit a piece.

"Hm, this is going to be interesting," said Chiharu.

I sighed. "He's so…" I started.

"Temperamental?" said Chiharu.

"Violent?" said Rika.

"Cynical?" said Naoko.

"Contemptuous?" said Tomoyo.

"Uh… all of the above," I said. They all laughed. "True, true," said Naoko.

"Well… I don't know," said Rika. "Maybe…because of his parents?"

"His mother is really nice," I protested. "It can't be her."

"Then… something may have happened to him… things like that are possible," said Tomoyo. "Something bad or…"

Those words made me feel weird. Was it pity?

"I don't know… but maybe he'll tell me since we're tutoring together now," I said.

"Possibly," said Chiharu.

"Good luck Sakura-chan," said Naoko. "He's a tough nut to crack."

"Yeah… thanks."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Oh hello Sakura-chan," said Yelan as she grabbed her purse. "I'm going out today."

"Okay, I hope that you have a good time," I said bowing.

Yelan smiled. "Syaoran is upstairs," she said.

"Okay," I said as I walked upstairs.

I knocked the door. Again, no reply.

"Hello?" I said as I opened the door.

There was no one there. "Hm?" I said confused.

But…

"Agh… he went out secretly," I muttered as I sat near the desk. "Might as well just do my homework…"

I took out my text books and began to write the problems...

**Syaoran's POV**

"Hey you bastard," said a guy. "You don't even know who you're up against!"

I blew the cigarette smoke on his face. "And I should care because…?" I said.

"You fucking bastard!" said the guy as he ran at me.

I placed my cigarette at the corner of my mouth.

I wrenched out the pole above me. As he ran to me, I smashed the pole across his face and heard the expected crack on his jaw.

He jerked and hit a wall.

"Hiroki-sama!" said his gang.

He made a weird noise as if he was choking.

"Hmph," I said as I breathed in the fine smoke.

"Die you brat!" said all four of the guys as they ran to me.

"Brat…?" I said.

I firmly gripped the pole and rammed them all on the face. I heard the pleasant cracks and saw the fine blood spurt from their mouths.

They all jerked and made the weird noise as they fell to the ground as well.

"Huh… you sons of bitches don't deserve to live…" I sighed as I threw my finished cigarette on their faces.

I turned around and walked towards my car.

The car made a running sound as I sped along the freeway. Damn wannabe gang… they don't know how to make one…

I reached the house and realized that the only light that was lit was my room. I climbed up the fence and the wall to my room.

I stared as I reached the window.

It was Kinomoto.

"Where were you?" she said surprised.

I climbed in through the window and took off my jacket.

"None of your business," I replied.

She went back on her work and I sat opposite of her. "You didn't tell on me?" I said.

"No," she replied. "Why would I?"

"I thought you were one of those bitches that tell on people," I said leaning to see her face.

She didn't seem to notice. "Well, Li," she said. "I'm not that kind of person…or a bitch."

"What are you… a guy then?"

"Do you refer all girls as bitches?"

"Hmm… yeah."

She looked up at me and said nothing. "Let's begin our lesson," she said as she took out her book. Geez… she wasn't even pissed.

"You seem happy today," I said.

"Not really," she said. "I'm 'in between.'"

"O…kay…" I said.

I placed my chin on top of my arms.

"Hey are you tired?" she asked.

"Yes… a lot…" I grumbled. "Damn punks."

"Excuse me?" asked Kinomoto.

"Nothing…" I said.

"Okay… next lesson on Japanese…" she said as she took out a piece of paper.

She wrote something in Chinese…

_Jing tian de tian chi, hen hao. (Today is a nice and warm day)_

I stared at it for a few seconds then…

"Jing tian de tian, hen hao," I read. "Today is a nice and warm day."

"Okay!" said Kinomoto. She wrote a sentence in Japanese.

That took some time for me.

"It's… 'watashi namae wa Sakura desu,'" said Kinomoto. "My name is Sakura."

"Say it again," I said.

"What's the point if I'm just telling you?" said Kinomoto.

"I just want to see how you say it," I said.

"Watashi namae wa Sakura desu," she repeated. "Here."

She scribbled something and I stared.

"Watashi namae wa Sakura desu," I lied; I had no idea what she wrote.

"No," she said. She sighed. "I knew you were going to do that…"

Damn.

"You tricked me," I said angrily.

"No, you just copied what I said," said Kinomoto. Then she stared at me.

"What?" I said.

"Is that blood?" she asked looking at my face.

I touched my cheek, but felt nothing.

"Where…?" I said.

"Right there," she replied pointing at my cheek.

"Where?" I said. I couldn't feel anything, which made me a bit frustrated. Is she playing a prank?

"Right there!" she said at my cheek.

WHAT THE FUCK?

"WHERE?" I shouted my anger rising to its limit.

"RIGHT THERE!" she shouted back pointing.

She grabbed my hand and placed it on my upper cheek. There was a small scratch and it was bleeding a bit. I think the pole scratched me when I took it out.

But that didn't matter. What mattered was…

She was sitting very close to me because she was trying to make me touch where my scratch was.

We sat staring at each other…

We cleared our throats as we quickly moved away.

"Uh… thanks," I said.

"No problem…" she said.

**Sakura's POV**

That was weird.

But… our tutoring meant nothing for him. He looked at me like he has never known me, like this never happened.

At my classes, he barely spoke and did nothing while we worked.

However, one day… I saw him outside, looking at a cherry blossom tree.

Winter has slowly passed and spring was coming.

I stared at him.

Did he like cherry blossoms?

At lunch he smoked near the tree and sat next to it.

"What's with Li and the cherry blossom tree?" I asked.

"I don't know…" said Rika. "No one does."

"He sits there most of the time, when he's not hanging out with his friends," said Chiharu. "It's weird."

"Hmm…" I said. "Well it's good to know that he likes something nice."

"Oh Sakura-chan why are so concerned?" asked Naoko.

"Ooh Sakura-chan, do you have the hots for him?" said Chiharu evily.

"_Chemistry_ perhaps?" said Tomoyo and Rika at the same time.

They laughed.

"NO…" I said. "It's just a thing that is weird you know?"

"…"

"C'mon guys!"

"Right…" they chorused in unison.

I sighed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

After school, the students ran out to the buses, cars, bicycles, and other transportations.

I took out my brother's bicycle (he let me borrow it since my skates got dirty from the car incident) and walked towards the school gate.

The winter wind was slowly dying, as the warm spring's breath began to reach the earth and the air. I turned to the school yard and saw the cherry blossom tree slowly moving gently from the cold wind.

I walked towards it and touched the trunk.

"_Sakura!"_

I blinked.

"Wh-what was that?" I whispered to myself.

What _was _that? Someone… calling me? I turned around and saw no one.

"Whoa… freaky…" I said as I turned back to the trunk. Then my eyes met someone's neck.

"AH!" I gasped, jumping back.

It was Li. "What are you doing here?" he said crushing his cigarette on the ground.

"Uh… well… it was such a pretty tree…" I said.

Whoa, I didn't _notice_ him come here!

"Yeah, whatever," he said dully. "Is our lesson today?"

"Uh… yes," I said taking my bike.

"C'mon, I'll take you with my car," he said as he placed his hand on my shoulder as he took my bike.

"_Sakura!"_

I gasped.

Whoa, again!

"What's wrong?" said Li looking up.

"Uh… nothing…" I said. "Just… I heard…" I turned around and saw nothing again.

"Heard…?" said Li.

"AHAHA!" I said nervously. "IT'S NOTHING!"

Li stared at me. "Are you on crack?" he asked.

"I… NO!" I said. "I'm not…!"

He grabbed my arm. "Gabber all you want, but walk for god's sake!" he said as he dragged me to the parking lot.

We started walking to the parking lot, when three guys came to us. They were a bit bloody and bruised.

"What happened…?" I whispered to Li.

"I lost my temper," replied Li.

"Ah…"

I gulped.

"Hey you fucking bastard!" shouted one. "We'll pay you back from last time!"

"Ah geez… didn't your moms tell you not to pick on someone you can't handle?" said Li lazily.

"You son of a bitch!" yelled another. They charged towards us.

"Kinomoto… stay back," whispered Li.

OH MY GOD! YOU'RE PLACING ME IN THE LINE OF DANGER!

The guys began to punch at him and kick him, but he seemed to dodge them.

Then one grabbed him by the arms and the other two punched him on the stomach and face. Li grunted in pain and his lip began to bleed.

"Get away from him you bastards!" I screamed as I took my math book and smashed them on the face with all my might.

They all toppled on the ground.

Li quickly stood up and kicked them all on the face.

The guys all passed out and their faces were bloodier than ever.

"Uh…" I said.

"They were worn out anyway…" said Li as he took my arm. We walked to his car.

We sat silent for a while.

"You okay?" he asked finally.

I looked at him. "Well… I'm better than you," I said as I looked as his bloody lip and bruised cheek.

"At least I know someone who can do something," he said.

"Hey…" I said as I wiped his bloody lip with my hand.

We both stared at each other.

"…"

He was the first to finally turn away. He placed his keys on the car and began to start it.

"Thanks…" he mumbled.

"Yeah…" I murmured back as he drove out of the parking lot.

We didn't talk until we reached the house.

"Welcome home, Syaoran…" said Yelan as she looked at us. She stared at Li.

"Hello," I said bowing.

"What happened to you?" she asked sternly looking at Li.

"Ah… uh…" stammered Li.

Oh no, the fight…

"He fell down when he tried to help me get my books from the stairs," I lied quickly.

Yelan looked at me. So did Li.

I nudged his back hard and he said, "Yeah…" stupidly.

"I see…" said Yelan. "Well, you guys may continue your lesson upstairs as planned, I'm going to my staff meeting."

She took her purse and walked to the garage.

Uh… Li… let's go," I whispered.

We both went upstairs quickly and sat on the table.

Then Li got a call on his cell.

"What's up…?" he sighed.

There was a girl's voice on the other end. "Uh… I'm…" said Li. He looked at me. "Nothing…"

There was a pause with the girl talking.

"Yeah… I'll come," he said. He hung up and walked downstairs.

"H-hey what are you doing?" I said running after him.

"Going out," said Li.

"No!" I said. "You can't go, you'll get in trouble!"

"No I won't," said Li.

He walked to the garage and went to his motorcycle (apparently, his mother took the car).

He started the bike and wore his helmet. "No!" I said as I grabbed stomach. "I'm going to get in trouble!"

"So what?" said Li as he tried to wrench me away from him.

"NO!" I said.

The sound of a car came towards us and a familiar car came near the garage. It was the one that Li drove from school.

We just stared shocked as the car appeared in front of us.

It was his mother, Yelan.

She walked out of the car and stared at us.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked sternly.

**To be continued…**

Second chapter finished! I hoped you enjoyed! I also fixed a bit my Chapter 1 so I suggest you reread it again! Chapter 3 will come soon! And please don't kill me from the cliffhanger! (holds stop sign).

Thanks to the people that helped me:

AniMe4yoo83 (my sister!), DragonDame57, and iMaSpOiLeDfAiLuR (my two best friends!)


	3. The Gift of Love and Loss

Chapter 3, enjoy!

**Chapter 3**

**The Gift of Love and Loss**

**Syaoran's POV**

"What do you think you're doing?" asked Yelan sternly.

Shit.

"Yelan-sama, why have you come so early?" asked Kinomoto nervously.

"I forgot my notes… but why are you both out here?" she said, looking at both of us.

Kinomoto practically blurted out.

"We were going to get new books!" she said taking her backpack.

Yelan stared at Kinomoto. So did I.

"I'm sorry Yelan-sama that I didn't tell you ahead of time," said Kinomoto bowing.

"Oh, it's alright," said Yelan smiling. "Off you two go now…"

She climb on the bike and we sped off to the road.

I gave her my helmet and I just wore sunglasses. The sun was breaking down to the earth and was nearly blinding me.

I drove to the library and we got some books.

Since it was dark, there was not that many people at the library.

"Ooh, these are interesting…" said Kinomoto looking at manga.

I sighed as I turned to the returns. Then I saw…

An archaeology field guide…

I picked it up and smiled. "I remember this…" I muttered.

"Hm? Remember what?" said Kinomoto as she appeared next to me.

"Nothing… it's nothing," I said trying to put the book away.

"Oh come on, I wanna see," said Kinomoto.

"Geez, it's none of your business!" I said.

Kinomoto frowned. "Too bad," she said as she snatched the book.

Bitch…

"Oh…" she said as she looked at the cover. She stared for some time.

"What is it?" I said lazily.

"Oh, it's… just that…" her words trailed off. She was looking at the book strangely now.

"What?" I said.

"My father… I think I saw him with this book before," she said smiling. "He used to read it all the time."

"What's with the past tense?" I said.

"He died… when I was little," she said sadly.

"Oh," I said. "Um…"

The atmosphere went really awkward, but Kinomoto just smiled.

"Hm…" I sighed. "Let's go…"

Kinomoto grabbed some books and we headed for my house.

"Li…" she said as I drove the bike.

"What…?" I said.

"You know that cherry blossom tree at our school?" she said.

"What about it?" I said.

"Why… why do you always hang around there? I mean I guess that's nice, but…" she started. "I'm just curious."

I didn't say anything. It was none of her business anyway…

"…"

"Did you say something Li?" she asked.

"It was a place I used to hang out a long time ago," I said.

"Oh…" she said.

We reached the house and did our usual lesson. Agh… damn lessons…

**Sakura's POV**

"Well that's how you pronounce it formally," I finished as I closed the book as Li sighed.

"Okay… whatever… I'll be going now," I said as I began to walk out of the room. Then something caught my eye.

I picked up the item which was…

"Hey, what's this for…?" I said.

"What?" said Li.

It was a chocolate box wrapped with a gold ribbon bow.

There was a note. I took it out, but Li snatched the stuff before I could read it.

"That's none of your business…" he said as he put the box away.

"Who's that for?" I asked surprised.

"None of your business," said Li.

"C'mon you can tell—"

"It's my girlfriend's alright? Can you go now?" said Li angrily.

Oh…

Those words strangely took some affect on me. What the… why should it? This feeling….

"Oh… okay," I said as I walked to the door.

That weird feeling was overcome with hatred. "Well you didn't have to snap at me! You could've just told me straight off you jerk!" I snapped as I slammed the door behind me.

I stomped downstairs (luckily Yelan wasn't there) and ran outside. "Hmph… jerk…" I said. "What an ass…"

Then… I stopped.

And something wet slid down my face…

I looked up and saw that it was raining. The soft cold drops touched my head and body… making my clothes wet with my hair.

Crap I forgot to ask him to take me home… oh well… I can just walk.

Better to walk in the rain than go in a car with that idiot.

I walked to the penguin park. The King Penguin slide was covered of cold drops of water and the swings slowly rocked back and forth from the soft wind.

I shivered from the coldness. It was dark and I grew worried… and I felt scared.

Then the coldness was so overwhelming that I had to stop walking and sit down on a bus stop bench. The light above me flickered from the bugs.

I closed my eyes tight. "S-stupid S-Sakura…" I muttered. "L-l-look what you've d-done…"

"_Sakura… Sakura…"_

"What…?" I whispered.

"_Sakura… Sa—"_

"Hey idiot," said a voice.

I looked up slowly and a warm coat was placed around me. It was Li; he was soaked as well, but he didn't really mind the cold much.

"Do you wanna die or something?" he said dully. "In this weather…"

"Hmph," I said.

"C'mon… let me take you home," said Li.

"No…" I said.

"I'm not getting in trouble because of you," said Li irritably as he pulled me.

The coldness overwhelmed me and I grew weak. So it was easy for him to drag me to his car.

As he drove me to my house, none of us spoke a word. He put the heater on, but I was so tired and cold I couldn't say my thanks.

Then we finally arrived at my house.

"Nice house…" he said as he helped me get off.

"Uh… thanks…" I said.

He stared at it for some time. "Uh… Li?" I said to him.

"Hm? Oh… yeah…" said Li looking at me. "Better not get a cold Kinomoto."

He went back inside his car and drove off.

I stared at his direction until he turned a corner. Then I realized that his coat was still on me and I froze.

Great…

As I opened the door I saw two worried faces at mines.

"Where were you?" demanded Toya.

"You're soaked too," said Yukito.

"Ah… sorry…" I said. "Things got complicated…"

"How?" said Toya.

"Traffic… and stuff," I replied.

"…"

"Oh okay," said Yukito. "Then you better get washed up…"

"Yeah…" I said as I walked up the stairs.

"Sakura… whose coat is that?" said Toya staring at it.

"Oh… uh… my friend's," I said as I ran up faster.

"Hey!" I heard Toya say.

"Hey, leave her alone for today… she's had it rough in this weather," said Yukito.

"Fine," said Toya.

Phew, thanks Yukito.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Good morning Sakura-chan!" said Tomoyo.

"Ah… good morning," I said as I opened my locker.

"Guess what today is?" said Chiharu.

"Oh…" I started.

"Valentine's Day!" said Naoko giving me a box of sweets.

"Wow thank you," I said. Tomoyo, Naoko, Chiharu, Rika, and I shared chocolate together.

Then the morning session bell rang.

"Okay see you later Sakura-chan," said my friends as they ran to their classes.

"Bye!" I said as I placed my book inside. But then I saw something that startled me.

"No… way…" I said slowly.

It was a chocolate box wrapped with a gold ribbon bow.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"You're kidding right?" said Tomoyo staring.

"I don't know…" I said. The same feeling still made me feel sick and excited. Does he like me…?

"Wow he's probably into your cuteness," said Naoko.

"Agreed," laughed Rika.

"Wait, did he give you a letter?" asked Chiharu.

"Um… yeah…" I said as I took out the small white note. It was fastened with a gold wire. As I unfastened it, my friends gasped as they read. I stared blankly.

_Since you first came to this school, I knew it was meant to be that we should be together. You may not notice me much, but I'm more than you think. I love your face, hair, body, personality, I love all of you. So will you be the one for me? Will you be my love? I'm sure you will; we were and always will be meant to be._

_Your secret admirer._

"Whoa…" said Rika.

I stared at the note for a very long time.

"Aw so cute," said Tomoyo.

"He really likes you," said Chiharu in awe.

"Or he's just saying stalker-type things," sighed Naoko.

I gulped. No it can't be him… can it? I mean, no it can't… he's so mean and a jerk there's no way that he can seriously like me…

NO WAY! IT CAN'T BE! IS IT?

"Sakura-chan are you okay?" asked Tomoyo.

"Y-yeah… I'm fine," I said faintly.

Is this for real… does he actually like me?

Oh my god… will I fall for him? AM I FALLING FOR HIM RIGHT NOW???

"Okay… I gotta go to class," I said with a voice unlike my own. "Later guys!"

I zipped into my classroom, leaving my friends behind.

I'm in serious trouble.

Now that I realize it, Syaoran's eye was on me like a hawk all day.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

**Syaoran's POV:**

What the hell was Kinomoto's problem? I tried talking to her, about our next tutoring lesson. I couldn't make it today… because of stuff. She kept avoiding me.

I sighed as Meling's groups of annoying bitchy friends came. They rattled on and on, even when I had my iPod phones on my ears, with full max volume.

They hissed at Kinomoto as she passed us (although I didn't hear, I saw them). I tired making eye contact, but again, she ignored me and left without saying a word.

Something happened to her today? What the hell…?

Not that I'm worried just…

I'm just curious that's all.

I walked alone to the store to buy cherry blossoms, and saw Kinomoto again. She was staring at the flowers, but I punched her arm to wake her.

"Earth to idiot Kinomoto," I said lazily. "Wake up, stupid."

I saw her face turn to anger. But right when she looked at me, her face was… white?

She just stared at me. Her face was getting red.

"Kinomoto?"

I snapped my fingers at her face.

"Ahh!" she said silently. "Sorry."

Her voice ended with a squeak.

"Hey," I snapped. "Did something…?"

"Um… nothing!" she interrupted, trying to run off.

I grabbed her arm. "What the hell is wrong with you?" I said. "You're acting all…"

"It's nothing!" she said turning even redder.

"Are you sick because of last night?" I asked. "When you stood in the rain for an hour…"

I tried to touch her face for any signs of fever, but she tried to pull away.

What's wrong with her? Why is her face so red? Crazy idiot she's probably sick because of her idiocy from last night.

"Hey!" said a voice. I quickly let go of Kinomoto's arm.

Ah great… Meiling…

She stared at Kinomoto. "What are you guys doing here?" she asked.

God, she's annoying.

"Making out, what do you want?" I said sarcastically. Kinomoto was red as her face can go. "Okay… um… bye," she said and she quickly walked away.

Kinomoto…?

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

She was late.

It was nearly eight at night. She was supposed to be here an hour ago.

I gave a groan as I slumped on my couch.

Then I heard a door open and close, my mother saying "Welcome!", and footsteps coming up the stairs.

I slowly sat back down on the table.

Kinomoto slowly opened the door and sat slowly across from me.

"You're late," I said dully.

"I'm… sorry," she said. She started to turn red again.

"You're still sick?" I said. "There's a thing called 'medicine;' I think you should try it."

"Huh? No…" said Kinomoto. "It's…"

She looked down and placed her palms on her feet.

"Whatever you are trying to say spill it," I said. "You're wasting my time."

"Uhm… um…" she said. She swallowed.

"Seriously, are you okay?" I said. "You're acting kind of stupid, well… more than usual."

She shook her head and finally looked up.

"Li… I know… um," she started. She looked down again. "I know… that we only just… met… but… if you think… that maybe we…"

"We?" I said. "What are you…?"

"I know it's not for you, but it's really sudden for me," she continued.

"Whoa… if you're talking about that making out remark I was only joking," I said. "I wasn't…"

"No… not that," said Kinomoto. I stared.

"Having feelings for me is quite… surprising from a person from you… but I…" she started.

"Wait, what?" I said. "What are you talking about?"

"I know you like me Li, but… please let me have some time to think," she said.

Now I knew she cracked. Maybe she smoked something.

"What the hell?" I snapped. She looked up startled.

"I don't like you; I already said I have a girlfriend!" I said. "What made you think I liked you?"

"But… but the note… and the chocolate!"

"What chocolate?"

"The one I saw here yesterday!"

"I never gave you that!"

"What?" said Kinomoto. "Then…"

"Do you have the box you got?" I said. She nodded and gave me the box.

I stared at it. It looked just like the one I had. I read the note pinned to it.

I stared at the note.

"Wow… this guy is so corny," I said as I read the letter. "It's like he wants to rape you or something."

"So… it wasn't you?" she asked.

"No," I said shortly. I brought out another box; my box.

"Oh…" she said staring.

Then she looked down.

"Hey…" I started.

Then she laughed. "Wow, I actually thought it was you!" she said.

"Uh… yeah… funny," I said.

"So I wonder who gave me this…?" she asked.

"Well it's not me…" I said.

She sighed as her laughs settled down. "Okay," she said. "Let's do our lesson…"

"Damn…" I sighed.

**Sakura's POV**

Hmm… so it wasn't Li…

What a relief… but…

Something told me that this feeling wasn't good…

"Aw… it was going to be interesting," said Naoko.

"Then I wonder who really gave you that box?" said Rika.

"Who knows," sighed Tomoyo.

The school bell rang for the end of class and everyone began to put away all the supplies of the presentations.

"I'm so nervous," said Chiharu. "I get stage fright easily…"

"It's okay… we have around three months to finish," said Tomoyo.

"Geez I can't believe we're doing a sad love drama presentation in front of the whole school," I sighed.

"I think the roles in our class will be announced next week…" said Naoko looking at the message board.

"Ahaha… what if Sakura-chan and Li had the main roles… that would be hilarious!" said Chiharu.

We all laughed.

"Okay Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo as her limousine came to pick her up. "We'll see you later!"

We all said our goodbyes and I started walking to the direction to Li's house.

What if… I did have the main role? I think I would faint and kill myself…

"Sakura-san…" said a voice. I turned and saw a guy who I recognized from my English class.

"Oh hello Masashi-san…" I said.

Masashi smiled. "Are you going somewhere?" he asked.

"Yes, I have to… (oh boy lying time….) uh… meet someone…" I said.

"Oh… I see…" said Masashi. "Well then… um… can I show you something?"

"Oh sure…" I said as I followed him to the English room.

He turned to me and blushed.

"Um… here Sakura-san…" he said as he gave me a box of chocolates. They were the same ones I got before.

"M-Masashi-san… don't tell me…" I started staring.

"Sakura-san… I fell in love with you… and I want to go out with you…" he said blushing harder.

WOW I HAD NO CLUE!

"Will you…?" he asked.

"Uhm… well…" I said.

Suddenly something grabbed him by the back of his jacket and threw him on the wall. There was a grunt of pain from Masashi.

"Masashi-san!" I said as I turned on the lights.

Then… I stared… irritated.

It was Li holding Masashi by the collar. "Oh… I thought you were going to rape her… my bad," he said as he let him go.

"Li!" I cried angrily.

"Okay… I'll give you guys some alone time, geez," he said.

"No wait…" I said.

Masashi was nice… but…

"I'm sorry Masashi-san… but… I can't go out with you," I said.

Masashi stared. Li pretended not to notice.

"I'm sorry… but I just can't," I said.

Masashi was quiet for a while. I held my breath…

"I understand Sakura-san… it must be a real shock since I've only known you for a week," he said. He walked out towards the door. "But one day… I'll win you… even over Li-san," he said smiling.

"WHAT?" said Li and I at once.

"Good day," said Masashi as he left.

We stared at him, then at each other.

"Okay that was weird," said Li. I nodded my head vigorously.

"Hey why did you come anyway?" I said as we both walked outside.

"Looking for you what else?" he replied.

"Why?" I said. Is this what I think it is?

"Tutoring dumb ass," said Li. "I'm going to be grounded if I skip."

"You always skip," I said dully. "You just ditch."

"…"

I noticed that he had his backpack on and he was holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Hey is that for your mom?" I asked looking at the flowers.

"No…" said Li.

"Huh…?" I said.

"It's for… my girlfriend," said Li.

"Oh…"

There was a pause.

"Do you want to meet her?" he asked finally.

"Oh sure…" I said thinking of Meiling (geez she's such a bitch).

Meiling and Li… should've known…

"It's not Meiling… if you're wondering," said Li as he started the car. "That's what all the idiots say… and Meiling doesn't do anything…"

"Oh I see…" I said.

He drove us… to…

The cemetery?

We walked to a grave with a small bunch of flowers

I stared.

"She… passed away a long time ago," said Li as he placed the flowers down. Then he took the box of chocolates that I saw before and placed them next to the gravestone.

"I'm… sorry," I said.

Li said nothing. He just stared at the grave for a very long time. I looked at the name, but it was so dirty that all I saw was the name "Amamiya."

"She has a pretty name," I complimented.

"I'm sure she would like that…" said Li.

"Was she… your first love?" I asked.

"She was…" said Li. "Part of her death… was because of me too."

"What? What did you do?" I asked.

"It's personal…" he said. He looked up at the sky. "I can never forgive myself… unless I know she forgives me."

"Li…" I said. Wow, this is the first time of me hearing something so deep and sad from him.

Then Li turned. "Hey… let's go, my mom will be coming home soon," he said. He walked to the parking lot.

"Okay… coming," I said.

I stared at the gravestone.

His love died… is this is reason why he was like this? Was he different when she was alive?

I noticed a small note next to the box.

"Hey, let's go," he said as I tried to peer into the letter.

"Aw..." I said as I ran back to him.

_Heaven seems so close to here, but I can't reach it…_

_With you gone my heart is broken… shattered… _

_And only you can heal it._

_My first love, my only love_

_You are the first and last to me…_

_I will always remember you… dream of you… _

_Until I meet you again one day…_

_When I die… I will find you… no matter what happens…_

_No one will stop me from finding you again… not even God._

_I love you forever… into eternity…_

_Even though you don't forgive me._

_I will love you always._

**To be continued…**

Hey no cliffhanger! I think the other two killed my friend so I decided not to make this a cliffhanger, but I will probably the next chapter! Muahahaha! Anyways, I'm sorry that Li lines sound corny as well so if you didn't like it, you can now know that I am bad at making romantic letters okay (smiles)? Please review and be expecting another chapter soon!


	4. The Bizzare Play

Chapter 4 everyone!

**Chapter 4**

**The Bizzare Play**

**Sakura's POV**

"I can't live without you," said Li. "You are the only one for me."

I looked down. "I… love you too, but we mustn't!" I said as I shook my head. "I can't be with you!"

I wiped my tears away and Li approached me.

"I'm sorry…" I whispered. "This is breaking my heart."

I fell in a faint, but Li caught me. "No!" he said. "No matter what happens… I… (I flinched) will not let your curse be in the way of us!"

"Cut!" said Tomoyo suddenly. "That was excellent!"

Li got away from me like I was a germ. "Finally…" I heard him mutter.

Everyone clapped and some whistled.

Naoko wiped her eyes with a handkerchief. "That… was beautiful," she said.

I stared. What are you guys talking about, Li practically messed up…

"Wow you can actually cried Sakura-chan!" said Chiharu. "You are so great!"

"Ahaha…" I said rubbing the back of my head. "I was just bringing in the dramatic moment…"

"Tripped on a line there neh, Li?" said Hiragizawa. Li scowled.

"Let's see you try, fag," he shot back. Everyone laughed.

Are you confused? Well I'll tell you. It all began a few days after I visited Amamiya…

**Flashback**

Our English class was presenting a play called, "Tragic Symphony." A sad love story between a princess who is cursed and a prince who wants to save her because they fell in love; the curse is that whoever the princess loves or cares about will be predicted to be killed in some sort of way. It's pretty weird and startlingly tragic.

And guess who was chosen as the prince and princess…

"Let's do a drawing so everyone can get their parts fairly," said Rika as she brought a huge bag.

Since Rika was chosen to be coordinator, she was told to organize the whole play. Tomoyo as well was lead designer in making all the costumes (which surprisingly took her very little time and they were all well made).

Everyone placed their names on a piece of paper and put them on the bag.

"Alright!" said Rika. "The role of the prince is…"

She smiled. "Li Syaoran!"

Everyone stared at Li. "Damn," he said.

"Whoo-hoo Li!" said Yamazaki.

"Oh shnaps, oh shnaps!" said Eriol.

"Shut up!" said Li as they laughed.

"And the princess is…" said Rika as she took out the piece of paper. She stared at the paper for a bit as she paused.

"Uh… Rika-chan?" said Chiharu.

She turned around and laughed nervously. Then she gave me an apologetic look.

No… it can't be…

"Kinomoto Sakura!" said Rika. Those words hit me like lightning.

Everyone exploded with laughter. They all predicted that it would be me (except for Meiling and her gang).

**End of Flashback**

"C'mon people, the play will start in a week!" said Rika. "Let's work hard!"

"Hai!" said everyone (Yes!).

"That's it for today!" said Rika. "See you guys tomorrow!"

The school bell rang and everyone poured out of the class.

"Huh… when will this be over," said Li.

"Ah, why couldn't I be the princess!" said Meiling. "Not that idiot Kinomoto."

Humph, maybe everyone hates your face that's why…

"It's just a play Meiling, get a grip," said Li.

"How can you be so calm!" said Meiling angrily. "That geek Kinomoto is with you instead of me!"

I stared.

"Ah geez Meiling, shut your trap will you?" sighed Chiharu.

"Yeah, you're giving everyone a headache…" said Naoko. Tomoyo and Rika smiled.

"Hmph!" said Meiling as she stormed of with her friends.

I sighed. "Thanks guys," I said in relief.

Of course Li was totally against the play, but if he didn't cooperate, he would fail the English course (his mother warned him that she would remove his privileges to use his credit cards if he failed).

So…

Throughout the week, our class took over the stage in the arts center. Li wasn't really good at acting, but hey, neither was I. However… there were always compliments like…

"THAT WAS GORGEOUS!" sighed Tomoyo.

"Outstanding," said Rika smiling.

"No one can do it better than you guys!" said Chiharu.

"The best of them all!" said Naoko.

Li and I stared blankly.

"No… that's…" we said at the same time.

"Now you guys are in sync!" said Tomoyo. They sighed dreamily.

Li and I sighed uncomfortably.

Geez…

**Syaoran's POV**

"Tomorrow… will kill me," said Kinomoto, placing the text books back in her book bag.

"It's just acting… it's not real," I said as I placed his cigarette on the ash tray. "Why are you so flipped out?"

"St-stage fright," she said.

"Nobody cares if you mess up, half the school doesn't even know you…" I said lazily.

"They will after I mess up big time," she said.

Geez, she won't quit.

"Look, I'm with you in most of the scenes… so I'll try to help you okay?" I said. "Just pretend it's just you and me talking…"

"How can you be so calm?" she said. "It's like you don't even care…"

"I don't," I said. "But that damn teacher said I would fail the fucking course…"

"Then… you're confident about this?" she said.

Confident about what?

"It's not real," I said. "It's…" I paused. "You're just showing people how you act on the story… with the lines they give you… it's no big deal."

She sighed. "I hope you're… right," she said.

"What kind of stupid play is this?" I said as I read through part of the script.

_The prince embraces the princess._

"I have to make out with you? That's gay," I said reading the lines.

"You have to what?" she exclaimed.

"Don't worry, I'll pretend," I said. "It's says, 'prince embraces the princess.'"

"Oh my…" she started.

She blinked and started to turn red.

"Wow, they really want this to be dramatic," I said surprised reading the part with all the dying. "I think everyone dies."

Then I looked up at her stunned face. "What's wrong with you?" I said.

"Ah… well… oh no," she said.

"What, we have to 'kiss' each other?" I said and she flinched.

"Yeah…" she said blushing.

"It's just a fake thing… it's not like," I started. Wait… did she think that it's…

I stared at her.

"So you're embarrassed?" I asked. "It's just a peck on the mouth."

"Well… er… I'm…" she stammered.

I smirked. "Wanna practice?" I said evilly as I moved towards her. "I know a more fun way…"

"Huh! No!" she said moving away. "It's just that—"

"Let's practice, it'll be fun," I said. I placed my right hand on the floor on her left which forced her to lie on her back.

"No Li!" she said blushing harder. "I don't…"

Then I placed a hand on my cheek and slowly dipped to her face.

She tightly shut her eyes.

She's so dense…

I stopped right where my lips would touch hers. Then I waited and she slowly opened her eyes.

"You are such an idiot," I chuckled. I sat up away from her and she stared at me.

"I can't believe you actually thought I was going to kiss you," I said. "That was funny."

"H-hey you scared me!" she said. "You…"

"It's what you get for being stupid," I said.

"…You…" she started.

"…?"

"I can't believe you did that…" she said as she hung her head. She placed my hands on her face and gasped. "You jerk!" she said, her voice muffled.

"Hey, it was just a joke!" I said. "Don't sob just because…"

"I hate you, you idiot!" she said. She began to cry.

Oh my god, fucking baby…

"Hey look, I'm sorry okay?" I said in a frustrated voice.

Her cried suddenly turned into laughs. "Huh?" I said.

"GOTCHA!" she said laughing.

"You liar," I said grumpily.

"It's what you get for being stupid," she repeated.

"Why you…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The whole audience clapped at the performance of the orchestra. They all bowed in front and walked to the sides of the stage.

"That was the music club," said the announcer. There was a slight pause. "Please wait for the presentation of junior English class of Terada Yoshiyuki."

The whole class was preparing for their costumes. I waited in the men's wardrobe room.

"Hey Li, good luck making out with Kinomoto," said Yamazaki.

"Hey shut up man," I said. "Or I'll stab you with this crappy sword."

Yamazaki and Hiragizawa laughed.

"Why does Li have to make out Kinomoto anyway?" said Hiragizawa as I flinched. "That's a little too…"

"Stupid?" I snapped. "It sure is."

"Oh well too bad," said Hiragizawa. "Make it a good one!"

"Break a leg!" said Yamazaki. "Until it bleeds!" They chuckled.

"I'm gonna kill you guys after this…" I snarled.

The theatrical, yet stupid music intro played. "Thank you for coming honorable guests!" said Daidouji's voice from the microphone. "The English junior class will now present 'Tragic Symphony'!"

The whole audience applauded.

Kinomoto and I had to wait behind the curtains.

I saw Kinomoto's panicked face. "You scared?" I whispered.

"No… of course not… I'm just…" she stammered.

"Yeah, that's great," I said as I pulled the curtain so that we can peek at the audience.

Kinomoto stared at the audience for a long time. "What's up with you?" I asked.

"Uh… uhm…" she sighed. "I don't think I can do…"

"Too bad Kinomoto…" I said. "It's too late for protests now."

**Sakura's POV**

He was right… I couldn't ditch everyone, but I'm so nervous.

"Hey…" said Li as he placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Huh…?" I said.

"I'm right behind you," he whispered in my ear, which sent, strangely, a sense of comfort through my nerves.

For a mean dude, he's supportive at least. Is this a one time offer?

"O… okay…" I said.

Tomoyo was narrating the story and the intro characters presented their act.

"Long ago, in a far away place, there was a kingdom of gold… ruled by a great king and a wise queen. However, they came in fight with a sorcerer and the sorcerer cursed them so that their only child would house a terrible curse…"

Syaoran's hand trailed down my shoulder to my right hand and gently grasped it.

What the… why is he so nice all of a sudden? I felt myself turn red.

"The queen was frightful of the curse, but the king refused to believe… and in a year, a daughter was born." (Rika held a fake baby and smiled as Yamazaki grinned).

As my part was coming near, he clenched my hand firmly, little by little. I blushed and looked at him, but his gaze was at the stage… like he didn't know that he was doing this…

"But then… after another year… the king suddenly died in an unexpected heart attack… then after another year… the queen died of a stroke…"

Tomoyo paused because some people were gasping and stuff.

"The signs of their deaths were unknown… and the kingdom believed that the doing was the curse of the sorcerer. The kingdom was in terror, and the trusted advisor of the king begged the sorcerer for the cure …"

Then he suddenly looked at me and I didn't speak, just stared.

STUPID SAKURA, WHAT'RE YOU DOING? STOP STARING AT HIM YOU…

"What's wrong?" he said.

"The sorcerer knew that a lot was destroyed, so she decided to give the cure. That the princess must find the one for her… and he must love her back and the curse must choose…"

"Uh… um…" I stuttered.

"You need to control your staring problem," he said looking back at the stage again. His hand still held mines.

"Then the princess finally grew up… as a beautiful young woman… yet she cloaked her generous personality as a cold-hearted person… to prevent herself from loving anyone because she feared she would kill someone…"

"You ready, Kinomoto?" he said to me.

"Y-yeah… I think," I murmured.

"Don't worry… just act like a bitch like you always do," he said.

"Uh…" I said.

What the, I'M NOT A BITCH!

"You mean a bastard like you?" I said angrily.

"Whatever…" he said as he pushed me to the stage.

"W-wait!" I said, startled.

"The princess had many suitors, but each died right after she met them…" said Tomoyo.

The whole audience stared at me and I froze. At this moment, I would've fainted from freaking out, but…

"Kinomoto!" snapped Li quietly. "What the hell are you doing! ACT!"

"R-right!" I whispered as Naoko went to me.

"Sakura-chan, you okay?" she whispered.

"Yeah, I think so…" I whispered back.

"Okay…" said Naoko winking. "Good luck…" She presented me with a basket full of flowers.

"Here, princess," she said in her most childish voice. "Something beautiful… for a beautiful person."

Okay, in this act, I'm supposed to reject them and snap at her. It's kinda hard… but…

"_Don't worry… just act like a bitch like you always do…"_

That… Li… you…

"What do you think you're doing, you little shit?" I said sharply the best I could as I slapped the flowers from her hand. Naoko gasped.

"How dare you give me such ugly things, get out of my sight!" I snapped.

Naoko cried fakely and ran away.

The crowd was filled with murmurs.

When Naoko reached the end of the stage, she grinned and gave me thumbs up.

"Break a leg!" she said smiling.

I nodded. Right… now I'm not so scared anymore.

The next scene was me sitting down in some garden and Li had to make his appearance.

"The princess was feared… they didn't know her curse… and the advisor passed away the week after the princess turned three years old," said Tomoyo, her voice echoing through the theather. "Until… a noble and kind prince came…"

Li came in with his costume and fake sword and grinned as though he was going to laugh at me. Half of the whole audience screamed out to him

"The prince was opposite of the princess, for he was kind to everyone, only merciless to enemies…" said Tomoyo. "And the prince saw the princess' cruel personality…"

"Excuse me," he said to me, which I was taken aback. His voice is so kind… and warm, and lighter than his original tone.

But this voice, this voice sounded so… familiar…

What was it…?

The student girls screamed out his name. "LI-KUN, WE LOVE YOU!" they screamed.

"Please remain silent!" said Kaho as the audience went wild.

"May I have your name, your highness?" he said smiling. I stared.

The crowd was silent as well.

"Kinomoto, say something!" Li hissed, back to his normal snappy tone.

"Uh…!" I said. I finally pushed his hand away. "You don't need to know my name," I said angrily.

He grinned, but quickly made an innocent face after that. "No need to be shy, your highness," he said his warmth coming back again. "My name is Nakamura Kaito…"

His hand touched me again very softly (don't worry, its part of the script too) and placed his lips on my hand.

The girls screeched in envy as the crowd oohed.

"Hasegawa… Ayumi," I said slowly.

"Nice to meet you," he said smiling again.

Geez, if only he was like this in real life…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Ayumi… I… can't stop thinking about you," said Li as he looked at the ground.

Next line… next line…

I looked at him in surprise.

"What do you mean?" I asked as he came to me. "You…"

"Please stay with me… stay," said Li as he held me tight.

Eh? This wasn't in the script…

I stared at him, but his face was covered by his bangs. He held me tighter.

"Stay… with me," he whispered. "Stay…"

"…"

"The prince fell in love with the princess," said Tomoyo through the speaker while the curtains closed. "And Ayumi did not know what to do…"

Li and I walked out of the stage as the other people were directed to go on in their places.

"That was very good Li," said Rika as she passed the scripts to the other people. "You were very detailed on your acting."

"Li…" I said.

"What?" said Li, looking at me. His face was back to his normal snappy tone.

"That part… I don't' think it was from the script," I said slowly.

"What part?" he asked.

"That part you just said to me…" I said. "That wasn't in—"

"Of course it was you idiot," he said. "What the hell are you saying?"

"What?" I said. "I never saw that line…"

"Look, just worry about your own lines… don't worry about mines, I got it covered," he said, taking out a lighter.

"…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"The princess didn't know what to do," read Tomoyo. "Then after a month from a short war, the prince returned to the princess.

"I always thought of you… and when I think of things other than me being with you… it hurts… a lot…" Li said placing his hand on his chest.

Some of the girls were screaming still, but very faintly, since Kaho was getting annoyed.

"Kaito…" I said. "I…"

He walked up to me and hugged me. I gasped along with most of the girls who screamed even louder.

Geez, how annoying could you get?

"Kaito… please don't tell me," I started.

"Ayumi… I love you," he said. "I want to be with you."

I stared at him. Li noticed that I was going to slow…

"Kinomoto…" he muttered between his clenched teeth. And I finally came back. Oh my god, I almost forgot my lines.

"Why…?' I said.

"I can't live without you," said Li. "You are the only one for me…"

I looked down.

"I… but we mustn't!" I said as I shook my head. "I can't be with you!"

I wiped my tears away and Li approached me.

"I'm sorry…" I whispered. "This is breaking my heart…"

I fell towards him and Li caught me. "No!" he said. "No matter what happens… I will not let your curse be in the way of us!"

"Kaito…!" I said. "I… I love you too!"

We hugged and Li smiled.

"I love you," he said as he kissed me on the lips. I stared, wide eyed, as I felt his tongue press inside my mouth.

"!"

**To be continued…**

Ahh… sorry I took so long in updating! But now it's finally here, and I'm going to try to update the next chapter faster because this one is shorter than usual. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review!


	5. Fighting Here and There

Hey all, here is chapter 5 and I hope you enjoy! WHAT WILL KINOMOTO AND LI'S REACTION BE? Well find out right now!

**Chapter 5**

**Fighting Here and There**

**Sakura's POV**

He kissed me… on the mouth.

A real kiss.

I couldn't breathe so I slowly pushed him away and our eyes met. I was gasping softly and he just stared at me.

There was an uncomfortable silence.

Tomoyo must've known this for she interrupted and said, "So the prince and princess finally confessed their love… and they thought was to be a happy ending…"

I stared at Li while the act was going on. He didn't look back at me.

But I wasn't going to let this interfere; and it seemed Li thought the same way.

After about ten minutes of the play, the end was approaching.

In the last scene, the prince Kaito was fatally injured, and he fell in the arms of the princess Ayumi.

Ayumi was supposed to mourn while Kaito was dying. He told her he loved her and in grief Ayumi stabbed herself with a knife.

"Ayumi became heartbroken… and so she committed suicide," said Tomoyo through the speaker. "And the curse was lifted from the princess."

(A/N: Sounds kind of… Romeo and Juliet wannabe; sorry about that people)

The curtain dropped and the audience clapped as they cried.

"Wow, you really made a sad story," said Rika wiping her eyes as she looked at Tomoyo, who smiled. "You guys are so good."

"Thank you…" I said smiling. Then I turned to Li, but he walked outside the stage.

"Li?" I whispered.

Tomoyo came to me and gave me a worried face. "Now I know that 'part' wasn't from the script…" she said. "I think you need to talk to him"

"Right," I said as I walked after him.

I saw him sitting on the stair steps, smoking.

"Li…" I said as I walked to him.

He glanced at me, but looked away quickly.

"What do you want?" he said.

"Li… why did you do that?" I said.

"Do what?" he said.

"Why did you kiss me?" I said, a bit angry for being impatient.

"I tried to spice up the play… what else?" he said throwing his cigarette on the street pavement.

"But…" I started.

"Look," he said as he stepped on the cigarette. He faced me.

"Don't think just because of that kiss, I like you," he said. "You know who I like… and it's not you, got that? So just leave me alone, will you?"

He walked back inside the school and I froze.

What kind of person is this guy?

A guy like him hanging out near a cherry blossom tree? Now it's him kissing me all of a sudden… something's going on with him…

But what…? Hmm…

**Syaoran's POV**

The next day when I came back at the house with Kinomoto (I had to take her home after our lesson again), my mother waited at the living room. Her face wasn't pleased.

"Look at this," she said throwing my report card at me.

Shit…

"You have a D in Japanese again…" she said looking at me. "So what have you got to say?"

"…"

"Ah…" said Kinomoto looking at the grades. "This is..."

"Syaoran, it looks like you've left me no choice," said Yelan. "I'm going to take away your credit cards, and you're grounded for a month… I don't want to see any credit bills… or you'll be grounded for a year."

"WHAT?" I shouted. "IT'S NOT MY FUCKING FAULT!"

"It seems it is by your grades," snapped Yelan.

"Please Yelan-san!" interrupted Kinomoto. "If… if Li gets a B on his grades… will you let him go?"

I stared at Kinomoto.

"…"

Kinomoto looked at me pleadingly. "Please… Li," she whispered.

Damn it.

"I… promise that I will get at least a B on my grades by the end of this quarter," I said.

Yelan was quiet for a while.

"Alright…" she said. "If you maintain B on all your grades…I will let your punishment go." I looked back at Kinomoto.

"Thank you Yelan-san!" said Kinomoto as she bowed. "I will try my best to help him!"

"Okay Sakura-chan… try your best," said Yelan.

"Okay, come on Li," said Kinomoto as she went up the stairs. I started to walk after her.

"You're lucky," said Yelan behind me. "She's spending all her free time looking after you."

"I don't need your stupid outlook on what's going on," I said as I walked upstairs.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Here," said Kinomoto as she stacked at least six books. "You'll need a lot of help."

"Why are you helping me?" I said.

"Because," said Kinomoto. "I want to, that's all."

"So you're not… uh… you don't care about that kiss right?" I said. "I mean, we both know it's fake, I'm just saying since that was your first kiss…"

"Who said that was my first kiss?" she said. I stared.

"…"

She laughed and she brought out her book bag.

"But you're right, it's no big deal…" she said. She paused a bit as if she was thinking.

"But it's kind of funny," she said smiling a bit. "So yeah…"

We were quiet as she was arranging the books.

"Hey…" I said. She looked up. "Hm?" she said.

The words choked me, eh but what the fuck, it's gonna kill me if I don't say it.

"Thanks…" I said struggling as I looked down. She smiled. "No problem," she said. "Just try to be nicer to me."

Whatever…

"Hey, we're friends," she said.

"We are?" I said.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I heard her stomach growl. Like literally… it was rumbling crazily.

"Uh…" I said.

"Ahaha… that was embarrassing," she said laughing nervously.

"Didn't you eat before we came?" I said.

"Well… I didn't have time to eat lunch at school," she said.

"Fine, let's go out to eat," I said as I brought my keys.

Kinomoto looked at me weird.

"As a FRIEND thing," I said annoyed. She smiled.

My mother went out again, so we just simply got my motorcycle and went to a nearby fast food joint.

"I'll get us some food… just wait here," I said. I parked the motorcycle next to the back and walked to the restaurant as Kinomoto sat on a table.

I ordered some food and we ate in silence.

I glanced to my left and saw some of Meiling's friends looking disgustingly at Kinomoto as they left.

I ignored them.

"Um… so…" said Kinomoto as she sipped through her straw.

"Hm?" I said drinking coke from the cup.

"Hey, there's a reason why straws are invented," said Kinomoto.

"Too lazy," I said lazily.

"I'll get more napkins…" said Kinomoto as some coke sprayed on her skirt.

"No I'll get it… I'm done eating anyway…" I said as I stood up. I went inside the restaurant and asked for napkins.

Then in the corner of my eye I saw some guys look at Kinomoto and walk out of the restaurant.

"Hey girl, wanna play with us?" I heard one guy say.

She'll take care of herself…

"No… I'm waiting for…" said Kinomoto. "Ah!"

I turned and I saw a guy grab her wrist. "Come one, girl… who are you waiting for?" he asked.

"M-my boyfriend!" she said.

I crashed to the ground.

WHAT THE HELL DOES SHE THINK SHE'S DOING?

"And if he sees you, he'll kick your ass!" she said.

Ah shit.

"Ah…" I said staring blankly.

O…kay… she's getting too far.

**Sakura's POV**

Li where _are _you?

"Yeah right, where's your dumb ass boyfriend right now?" he said.

"Shut up!" I snapped punching him on the face. The guy released his grip and fell on the ground.

"Whoa!" said one in the back.

The guy rubbed off the blood from his mouth. "Damn bitch, I'll teach you to respect me!" he said as he stood up.

The other guys grabbed me.

"Hey, let go!" I said struggling from their grasp. I bit one guy's hand. Yuck…

"ARGH!" said the guy falling back.

"Help!" I screamed.

"Hey!" said a voice. I turned and saw Li with our napkins.

"Let her go," he said.

"Are you her boyfriend?" asked one.

"What are you talking about?" said Li.

"Syaoran!" I said with a sweet tone.

Li glared at me.

Huh…?

"Answer me!" said the guy.

Li gave a pause.

"I guess…" he mumbled angrily.

"Come here punk!" said the guy who I punched. "Show me what you're made—"

Li punched him on the other side of the face and I heard the guy's jaw crack. He fell back and his mouth was bleeding like crazy.

"You little bastard!" said another guy. "I'm gonna kick your—"

Li threw the coke at his face.

"My eyes!" the guy screamed as he ran.

"You guys need to shut the hell up," said Li dully.

He took his food and shoved it on another guy's face. "Pigs should eat people's leftovers and leave them alone," he said. "Didn't your mommy tell you that?"

"Damn, you bastard!" said the guy.

Then the guy who got punched got up and grabbed me. He placed a knife near my neck. "Don't move or I'll kill her!" he said.

Li stared at me.

"Let me go!" I said.

Li just stood there and was silent, and then the other guys started to beat him. The manager started to call the police. Everyone else left the vicinity.

"Hahaha!" the guy laughed. "Weak when your precious girlfriend is going to die!"

Li just stood there, until he was so beaten up he fell on the ground.

Why did he just stand there…?

"Syaoran!" I cried.

"Sa… Sakura…" whispered Li.

Sa… kura…

He called me… by my first name…

BUT WHO CARES RIGHT NOW!

I turned to the guy who held me. "You bastard!" I screamed as I smashed my head on his face.

"ARRGHH!" screamed the guy and I snatched his knife.

I punched that guy on the face again and he finally passed out.

"Whoa the girl snapped!" said a guy.

HELL YEAH I SNAPPED!

"Get away or I'll stab you!" I screamed and the guys backed away. The helped up the leader (who Li and I punched) and walked away.

I went to Li who was bruised and bloody.

"Are you alright?" I said.

"Yeah… I'm okay…" he said as he slowly walked to his bike. He turned his key on the bike and I held on his stomach.

"I'm sorry," I said. He was hurt so badly because of me…

"No… it's okay…" he said. There was a pause. "But don't call me 'Syaoran' anymore…" he said.

"Huh…? Why?" I asked. He was the one that called me 'Sakura' too…

"Just don't," he said.

We slowly rode to his house.

To my relief, his mother didn't arrive yet. If she did, she would ask how he got hurt and I hate lying to her…

Li rested on his bed while I got his first aid kit.

I sat next to him and he slowly opened his eyes to me.

I dipped rubbing alcohol on a cloth. "I'm sorry… for…" I said.

"Stop, you already apologized," he said irritated.

"Uh… yeah…" I said.

I helped him take off his shirt and saw his body. Whoa, he has muscles…

I blinked and vigorously shook my head.

DON'T FALL FOR THAT IDIOT!

"Huh?" said Li looking at me.

"Nothing!" I said as I took the alcohol and dabbed some on his stomach which had little cuts.

"Agh…" said Li flinching.

"Sorry… alcohol stings…" I said as I carefully dabbed again.

"You think I don't know that by now?" said Li.

"Oh shut up you baby," I said pressing harder.

"AH!" said Li. "Not so hard!"

"Well it wouldn't hurt so much if you didn't move!" I said.

"You're the one pressing on my cuts!" said Li sharply.

"That's because you're screaming and moving around so much!" I snapped.

"I wouldn't be doing that if you would stop hurting me!" shouted Li.

"You were the one that started complaining anyway!" I yelled.

The alcohol reached one of his deep cuts.

"FUCK THAT HURTS!" shouted Li as he fell back on the bed.

"Ah!" I said as I fell because I lost my balance.

I blinked once and stared. He did too.

"Uh…" I said.

I was on top of him and our noses were barely touching each other.

We stared at each other stupidly.

Finally I found my voice.

"Sorry," I said quickly as I pulled away from him.

"S'okay…" said Li.

"…"

"…"

"Let me…" I said as I carefully wiped some alcohol on the cuts on his face. He flinched, but didn't say anything.

This… reminded me about that kiss… I decided to shake that off…

After all, it wasn't real. But for this one, Li's kinda mad...

"Does it hurt that bad?" I whispered.

"No…" he said quietly. "Not anymore."

"Here…" I said as I blew softly on his cut. He just stared at me.

"There," I said as I bandaged his cut.

"Thanks…" said Li awkwardly.

"Well… now's the time for our lesson…" I said looking through my backpack.

Li sighed. "You want me to suffer…" he said.

"No pain, no gain," I said flipping through the English textbook.

"What a stupid saying," snorted Li.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Sakura-chan… that cut…" said Tomoyo. "What happened?"

"Oh, I… uh…!" I said. "I got in a fight…"

"Oh are you alright Sakura-chan?" said Rika.

"With who?" asked Chiharu.

"Some shady guys…" I said.

"Whoa, did you kick all their asses?" said Naoko.

"No… Li saved me," I said truthfully.

Tomoyo, Chiharu, Naoko, and Rika stared at me.

"What?" I said.

"That's very… unusual," said Tomoyo. "He usually doesn't do that… even for little kids."

"Whoa, really?" I said surprised.

They all nodded.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Li was sitting near the cherry blossom tree again. Why does he always sit there? Keeps me wondering…

"Hey you, Kinomoto," said a voice.

I turned.

It was that Meiling girl and her friends. "Come with us," she said.

"…"

We went to the corner of the school. Her friends suddenly pushed me to the ground.

"Hey!" I said.

Then Meiling came to me and slapped me on the face. My face stung from the force.

"Bitch… you get away from _my _Li-kun," snapped Meiling. "You don't deserve him!"

"What are you talking about?" I said.

"I know you like him!" she said. She slapped me again, this time harder. The girls pushed me to her again.

"He's too much for you!" she snapped. "He's _mine_!"

"WHOEVER SAID HE WAS YOURS? I screamed back and punched her on the face.

She gasped as she fell down.

I froze.

Oh my god. Did I just say that?

"BITCH!" Meiling screamed. Her nose was bleeding. She gave me harder slaps across the face as her friends held me.

They finally pushed me on the ground.

"Li-kun is going to marry me!" she said. "And you can't do anything about it!"

"I didn't say I liked him!" I said.

"Liar!" said Meiling. They kicked me on the face and body and I lost consciousness from exhaustion.

I don't like Li…

I don't like Li…

I don't like him…

_Sakura! Sakura!_

What's that voice…? Who's calling me? What the hell?

_Sakura… Sakura…_

I've heard that voice before… but who was it? I can't remember…

_Sakura… promise me…_

Promise? Promise what…?

"Sakura… Sakura…" said a voice… clearer this time.

I couldn't open my eyes, but I began to have my senses. I was tired and cold… but someone was holding me and it felt so warm…

"Kinomoto… wake up…" said the voice. The person gave me light slaps on the face.

I slowly opened my eyes and I saw…

"Li…?" I whispered slowly. "Huh… why are you here…?"

He looked weird. "You didn't show up for our lesson," he said.

"Wh-what? What time is it?" I said weakly.

"It's nine p.m.," said Li.

"Whoa…" I said.

"Here," said Li as he knelt down. He grabbed under my knees and hoisted me up to his back.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I…" I started. I paused. What would happen if I told him Meiling beat me up? He wouldn't believe me… or he would laugh…

"I… fainted…" I lied. "I got a small fever…"

"Liar," said Li, seeing right through me.

I sighed.

He looked up. "You don't have to tell me," he said.

"Okay…" I sighed. I was really tired.

"Spring is going fast…" he said softly.

"You like… the spring?" I asked.

"Yes…" he said. "And no."

"…?"

"_She_ died at spring…" said Li. "It's been seven years… and I still can't get over it… but that's life."

"Why are you telling me this…" I mumbled.

"Aren't we friends?" he said dully.

He walked to his car and carefully put me on the front passenger seat. Then he put on the buckle for me and then sat on his seat.

He started the car. "Meiling did this to you didn't she?" he said quietly.

"Uh… how did you know…?" I said.

"Just a suspicion," he said.

"Oh…" I said.

"What did she say to you?" he said.

"Uh… nothing much…" I lied thoughtfully again. What if I told him what I said? He'll probably laugh even harder…

Li said nothing for a while and just drove silently. Until…

He reached my house which was empty. Toya was taking late shifts.

"You okay?" said Li as he opened the door for me.

"Yeah, I'm good," I said as I walked out slowly.

"Tell me… if you have problems…" he said. He looked like he was going to say something, but then stopped.

"Thank you…" I said. I walked towards the doorknob.

"Hey…" he said suddenly.

"Hm?" I said turning around.

"Uh… nothing," he said. "See you later."

"O…kay…" I said as he drove off.

**Syaoran's POV**

I realized that the quarter grades came out as I opened the mail. I ripped the seal from the corner and opened it, reading its contents.

Then my body felt sick.

"Damn…" I muttered. I walked to the house and walked slowly upstairs where Kinomoto was reading her books in my room.

She looked up at me and smiled. "What's up?" she said.

"Here…" I said as I threw it at her and she caught it.

She read the paper and stared wide-eyed.

"Yeah…" I said.

"This is…" she started.

**To be continued…**

Can you tell why I put the title "Fighting Here and There" on this chapter? Hahaha… hoped you enjoyed and I hope you review! Next chapter will reveal what Li got on his report card, so until later… you'll have to keep guessing! PLEASE REVIEW! Thanks to all who reviewed me so far, you guys are really helping me be confident into finishing this story!


	6. Friendship Is a Weird Thing

Wow, I'm really sorry everyone… I updated so slowly. Here I present Chapter 6, hope you guys enjoy!

**Chapter 6**

**Friendship Is a Weird Thing**

**Sakura's POV**

I stared at the grades.

No… way…

"You got…" I whispered.

"All B's," said Li smirking.

"You did it…" I said looking at the GPA score. Wow… a 3.0…

"Like I was going to let my mom have my credit cards…" muttered Li angrily.

I laughed. "I guess you don't need me anymore," I said.

Li stared.

It's true…

He doesn't need me anymore… he's doing great without me…

"It's true… isn't it…?" I said aloud. "You're doing great… you don't need me."

"Kinomoto…" started Li, looking bewildered. "I…"

Something made me want to run away.

"Hey, I gotta study," I said hurriedly as I shoved my books in my bag. "Lots of tests, you know."

"Hey wait," said Li. I tried to ignore those words.

"See you later!" I said as I ran downstairs.

I ran down the street pavement.

Wow… look at me… I'm so weird.

OH MY GOD, I JUST TOTALLY EMBARASSED MYSELF. WHY DID I HAVE TO OPEN MY BIG MOUTH AND SAY THAT?

"Stop it Sakura," I muttered to myself. "You're happy… being away from that spoiled brat… that's right… you're happy."

I closed my eyes.

Am I…?

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hey, hey Sakura-chan!" said Chiharu. "It's almost April!"

"Uh…" I said.

"Your birthday is tomorrow, dummy!" said Tomoyo. "Can we crash at your house?"

"Ah… well…" I said.

Wow… months already pass by really quickly… and I was so caught up with the play and… stuff… that I didn't even realize my own birthday… was coming…

"Sakura-chan, is it okay?" said Rika looking nervously.

"Um…" I said.

"Very well! We'll come by at six p.m. tomorrow!" said Naoko as the school bell rang.

I stared blankly.

"Bye, bye Sakura-chan!" said Chiharu as they waved. They ran a hundred miles per hour toward their houses, blowing some people away.

"Bye…?" I said.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Toya sputtered his juice on the table.

"Whoa dude, watch it!" said Yukito as he pushed me from the spraying range.

"WH-WHAT? A SLEEPOVER?" said Toya wiping his mouth.

"I really didn't do anything…" I said truthfully.

"That doesn't make sense at all, brat," said Toya.

"Hey…!" I said.

"C'mon Toya, she's not a kid anymore…" said Yukito.

Toya was silent for a while.

"Fine… go have your sleepover…" he said.

"It's at my house," I added.

Toya crashed from his chair. "WHAT?" he exclaimed.

"You didn't plan that either did you?" sighed Yukito. I shook my head.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The doorbell rang.

I put my books away and I ran to the door.

(A/N: BOOKS? What a geek…)

"Sakura-chan!" said Tomoyo as she hugged me.

"Wah!" I said nearly falling.

"Oh wow, your house is so nice and clean," said Rika in awe.

"Thank you…" I said.

"I hope you don't mind… I brought my boyfriend," said Chiharu as she looked at her side.

"Hello," said the guy next to her. He had dark short hair and he seemed to smile a lot. He shook my hand. "My name is Yamazaki Takashi," he said.

"Hello," I said smiling. Chiharu laughed nervously. "Um… I'm sorry Sakura-chan, but he brought two of his friends… as well," she said. "Hope you don't mind that…"

"Another…?" I said.

Another guy came behind Takashi. He had long bangs and glasses.

"Pleased to meet you," he said. "My name is Hiiragizawa Eriol."

"Um…" I said as he shook my hand.

"Ah… oh yeah… they invited _him_ too," said Tomoyo.

"Him?" I said.

Oh no… no way…

I stared at the last guy.

It was Li.

He stared at me too.

Li… you came…?

"Damn, I knew this house was familiar!" he said.

"Whoa Li, you've been here?" said Takashi.

"I see you guys have met!" said Chiharu.

"Looks like he's been a bit devilish with Kinomoto here," said Eriol laughing.

"Ahaha…" said Naoko.

"Oh dear…" said Rika.

"Ooh…" said Tomoyo.

"Li wanted to go so bad because he didn't want to be left out," Eriol added.

"What the hell are you talking about?" said Li. "You guys practically dragged me here!"

They said nothing for a second. I figured that he was right. Sigh…

"Too late!" said Takashi suddenly as he shoved Li inside.

"What the—!" said Li.

"I heard you have an older brother," said Tomoyo to me as Takashi and Eriol wrestled Li to the ground.

"Knock him out so we can trap him in the closet!" said Takashi.

"I'll aim for his face…" huffed Eriol as he drew his fist.

"Oh yeah… he's going hang out with his friends for the night too," I said thinking about Yukito, trying to ignore the struggling Li's yells.

"I see," said Rika who seemed unaffected by the shouting.

"Okay!" said Chiharu. "Let's go to the movies!"

"Wha…?" I said. Why are we going to the movies…?

"Uhm... cause!" said Naoko as she pushed me out the door.

"Get off of me!" yelled Li as he shoved Eriol and Takashi away. They easily moved back, laughing.

Li drove us to the movies with his car (not that he liked it). I thought this was a sleepover…

Then we walked to the movie ticket booth. Chiharu stopped.

"Tomoyo-chan, Rika-chan, Naoko-chan, and I are going to go out and see something," said Chiharu. She nodded to the guys.

"See what?" I said.

"It's a project for school," said Chiharu. "So in the meantime, you can watch the movies with Li."

"Huh?" said Li and I at the same time.

They all walked to the side of the street. "See you guys later!" said Rika.

"I already preordered your tickets so you better go!" said Naoko. "It's a great movie!"

"Wait!" I said, but they sprinted away.

"Ah…" I said.

Li looked at the tickets. "What the hell are they trying to do?" he said.

"I don't know…" I said.

"C'mon…" he said, and we walked to the theater.

"What movie is it anyway?" I said.

"A horror one," said Li. "Man… this is going to get boring."

"A… a what?" I whispered.

My worst fear. Scary stories, scary movies… I HATE THEM ALL!

"What's wrong?" said Li.

"Ah… I hate scary stuff," I said.

"Ah geez, you baby," he said.

"I'm not a baby!" I said.

He smirked. Uh-oh. An _evil_ smirk.

"Come watch it with me then," he said as he took my wrist.

"Hey! Wait!" I said as he dragged me.

He quickly ordered some food and made me carry the popcorn.

"No… I don't wanna watch it," I said as he forced me to sit down on his left side.

"You're watching it with me," said Li. "And it's not like its real."

"Easier for you to say…" I said.

The commercials started and I looked below. To my disgust, there were couples making out.

"That's just…" I started.

"Everyone does that… well… couples anyway," said Li eating his popcorn. He was looking at the commercials.

I stared at him. Wonder what I said before… didn't affect him?

Is he just trying to forget everything that I said?

"PLEASE BE SEATED FOR OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION," said the speakers suddenly as the room darkened even further.

"YEEK!" I said as some of the popcorn flew everywhere.

"Hey, don't waste my money!" said Li grabbing the tub of popcorn from me.

"Wahh…" I said as I felt tears coming up from fright.

Suddenly I felt warmth on my right hand. I realized it was Li's hand on mine and I froze.

"I'll squeeze your hand on the scary parts," he said still staring at the screen. This reminded me about the play. I turned red.

"Okay…" I said slowly. Better than just staring at the screen where all the blood and crap gets to your mind…

"Did I hear a thank you?"

"No…" I was annoyed.

"Okay, I'll pretend you already said it," said Li grinning as he looked back at the screen.

He did warn me on the scary parts. Every time someone was going to die or there was a ghost popping out, he squeezed my hand gently.

Then I would close my eyes and just hear the eerie screams and sinister laughs.

My fear was fading away… and I was happy that he would do such a nice thing for me.

Er… not that I liked seeing this with him. NEVER!

Then, in the near end of the movie, there was a part where a girl was going to the cemetery.

I started to close my eyes.

"Kinomoto, nothing wrong happens here," said Li. "Don't worry."

"You sure?" I said.

He paused. "Yeah," he said.

"Okay…" I said opening them.

Then a ghost grabbed the girl and she screamed.

I screamed ten times louder than that girl.

"Whoa…!" said Li covering his ears.

Everyone turned to look at us, but I didn't care.

"You liar!" I said angrily, tears coming out of my eyes. "I trusted you!" I stomped away from the theater and heard him say, "Hey Kinomoto, wait!"

I was so pissed. How could he have done that?

Back there, it sounded dramatic. I can't believe I said that. It sounded like we were in a drama.

Oh no, I bet it looked like we were in some sort of relationship...

But... WHO CARES! HE'S STILL A JERK!

I kept walking away until I reached outside. He grabbed my arm and turned me around.

"What's your problem?" he said. "I didn't know!"

"Yes you did you liar!" I said. "You knew from the very beginning!"

"Why are you crying?" he said staring at me.

"I'm not crying!" I said wiping my eyes.

"Yeah you are," said Li as he placed his hand on my cheek and wiped some of the tears away.

I looked away from him.

"Were you that scared?" he said.

I didn't answer. I wanted to scream out at his face and say, "HELL YES I WAS SCARED!" but the words didn't seem to come out.

"Look…" he said. He sighed.

"I didn't know you hated scary stuff that bad…" he said. "So… sorry, alright?"

I still looked away.

"Hey, hey I said I was sorry," he said bringing up his annoyance again.

"…"

I looked at him.

Then he started to laugh. "That was pretty funny how you freaked though," he said.

"What?" I exclaimed.

"You act just like her when you watch scary stuff," he said.

"Her?" I said.

He stopped, like he accidentally said something not good for someone to say. He cleared his throat.

"I didn't say anything," he said as he walked to his car.

O…kay…

He was probably talking about… Amamiya…

Li drove back to my house. "Your house…" he said as we reached there.

"Hm?" I said. "What's up?" I said. He looked at it for some time.

"Li?"

He finally took off his seatbelt. "Nothing… it's just my imagination," he said.

We walked to the house and I unlocked the door. "I wonder if anyone came back…" I said (I gave them an extra house key). I saw tons of pairs of shoes next to the door.

"What the…" I started reaching for the light.

"SURPRISE!" said my friends as the lights turned on.

"WAH!" I said jumping back as Li caught me behind.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAKURA-CHAN!" said Tomoyo, Chiharu, Rika, and Naoko as they hugged me.

"Wow!" I said as the cake blazed with candles was placed in front of me.

They sang "Happy Birthday" and gave me presents. I got a glimpse of Li who was just watching in the back.

I froze when I opened Naoko's present.

"A book of scary stories…" said Tomoyo, her voice not surpised.

"Aha…" I said sweating.

"Enjoy!" said Naoko.

Rika gave me a heart brooch and Tomoyo gave me a kit for making crafts. Chiharu gave me a gorgeous spring dress.

"The guys bought all the party supplies," said Chiharu.

"Yeah, and it wasn't cheap," muttered Yamazaki. "So you better enjoy it…"

"Oh wow, thank you so much!" I said.

"You're welcome!" said Tomoyo.

In the later evening, we went to a restaurant and I got another birthday cake.

At night, everyone slept in the living room. "Let's say scary stories!" said Naoko.

"Let's not," I said nervously.

"What's wrong Sakura-chan?" said Rika. But Takashi cut in.

"Man, I'm beat," he said.

"Yeah, it's getting late," said Eriol. "We should sleep."

"Hmm you're right," said Naoko as she took off her glasses. Phew…

They all fell fast asleep. Everyone… except for me…

"Oh…" I said as I took out my blanket covers. I walked outside and sat on the stairs.

Stupid movie… it's keeping me up…

The stars were shining brighter than ever. Wow… so pretty…

Then something bothered me.

"Hmm… I'm seventeen… but I don't feel seventeen," I muttered. "I still feel like…"

"Hey," said a voice as a hand touched my shoulder.

"WAHH!" I said startled as I turned; it was Li who flinched from my scream.

"Still scared about the movie?" said Li as he sat down next to me.

"Yeah… kind of," I said sighing.

"Well, I forgot to give this to you," he said as he gave me a small box wrapped with beautiful paper.

"Hey, no wait… you shouldn't have," I said.

"Just open it," he said impatiently.

"Hey… is this your way of saying that we should be friends?" I asked.

"Sure… I'd love making friends with a loser like you," he said sarcastically.

Damn idiot.

"Hm?" I said staring at the paper.

"What?" said Li.

"Why is… why did you wrap it so cute and pretty?" I asked amazed. "It's not really like you… except the box of chocolates from before…"

"I was going to give you just the box but my mom found out and she wrapped it for me…" sighed Li.

I slowly unwrapped the present.

It was…

"A stuffed animal?" I said. It was orange with beady eyes and large ears. It also had wings and a long tail with a fluff at the end.

"You don't like it?" he said.

"Oh no, it's really cute!" I said. "I'll name him… hmm…"

"You name your stuffed animals?" said Li. "You are such a weird…"

"I'll name him… him..." I said, interrupting angrily.

I couldn't think of a name… but a word popped out from my head to my mouth.

"I'll name him Kero!" I said, remembering the name somewhere from a manga. "Yeah, Kero; that's cute name."

"Cool," said Li not interested.

"Thank you… Li," I said.

"Babies need their toys…" said Li as he looked up at the sky.

Why you…

I wanted to punch him. But… since it was such a nice evening I decided not to ruin the mood.

There was a pause. Neither of us said anything.

"Um…" I said. Li still stared at the sky.

"Pretty stars," I said stupidly. I couldn't think of anything else to say. It was too awkward if we didn't say anything.

"Yeah…" said Li. "What a nice start you made…"

Why must he always be so negative?

He placed his arms under his head and lied on his back. "Wanna hear a scary story?" he said smirking.

"No…!" I said a little too loudly.

We both quickly turned around to see if anyone woke up. Tomoyo and Rika stirred, but remained sleeping.

He lied on his back again, but took out a cigarette. Then he lit it and I smelled the familiar stench.

"Whoa Li," I said as I coughed. "Why do you smoke?"

Li didn't answer.

"Did you want to be cool or something?" I said. "If that was the case—"

"No…" said Li suddenly.

"Hm?" I said.

He inhaled again and blew the smoke towards the sky. "I was…" he started. There was a long pause. "I had… problems," he said finally.

"What…?" I said.

"Do you not know what that word means?" he said.

"I know what that word means!" I said.

"Hey keep it down okay?" said Takashi sleepily.

"Nice going," said Li.

"Hmph," I said.

Li blew his last bit and rammed the cigarette on the stone. "I had a problem… that's it," said Li.

"When did you start?" I asked.

"A long time ago," said Li. "Doesn't matter though…"

"What do you mean?" I said.

"You really don't know English do you?" he said. "I said I don't care. Nothing's out there for me anyway… no one else cares…"

"I do," I blurted.

Li looked at me. "What?" he said.

"Nothing…" I said hastily.

He sighed.

I placed my hand on his shoulder. "Doesn't it feel better… to express what you're feeling and talking to someone else about it?"

"I'm not going to answer that," said Li arrogantly. I smiled again.

"Thank you… Li… for telling me this," I said.

"What?" he said. "Why are you…?"

"What you say to me… more about you… may be more painful than other people," I said. "But at least you tell me what's happening."

**Syaoran's POV**

Kinomoto… why…

Why does it feel better when I'm talking to you… than any other person?

"Ah, we had fun Sakura-chan," said Rika as they began to pack their belongings to Tomoyo's limousine.

"Happy birthday," said Chiharu.

"Thanks," said Kinomoto smiling.

"Li…" said Daidouji behind me.

"What…?" I said flicking the cigarette ash on the ground.

"Sakura-chan looks like her doesn't she?" she said smiling.

"…"

"Are you going to tell her… what happened?" she asked.

"I don't know…" I said.

"Don't worry… I won't tell her," said Daidouji. "Even though… I'm really curious about—"

"But she died… it's not possible," I said as I threw my cigarette to the ground and grounded it with my foot. "She can't come back from the dead…"

"I wish she did… she was wonderful," said Daidouji sadly.

"We all have our wishes," I said as I walked back to the house.

**To be continued… and please review!**


	7. Sakura's Fears

Oh my crap, I finally updated. School is killer, but I still managed time for this! Sorry and hugs to all who have been patient! Please enjoy this chapter!

**Chapter 7**

**Sakura's Fears**

**Sakura's POV**

"Good morning!" I said as I scrambled to get my shoes.

"You sleep a lot more lately on Fridays," said Toya as he sipped his coffee.

"Quiet you," I replied annoyed.

"Sorry, can't ignore monsters like you," said Toya.

"You…"

"Good morning Sakura-chan," said Yukito (FYI: He visits to bring food and stuff). He carried a tray of sandwiches.

"Good morning!" I said as I smiled.

"Have a nice rest Sakura-chan?" asked Yukito warmly.

"Well I—"

"What are you talking about, she was basically hibernating…" said Toya irritably.

"CUT THE CRAP WILL YA?" I snapped, blowing him away.

"Ah, Toya, don't make her mad," said Yukito. "She's your sister."

"Rules of siblings don't apply to me," said Toya.

"Ah…" said Yukito.

I ripped the ham from my sandwich savagely.

"Hey Sakura," said Toya suddenly, as though he had forgotten himself. "Don't forget about tomorrow."

"Yeah… I know…" I said.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hey Sakura-chan…" said Tomoyo. "Let's have a picnic tomorrow!"

"Uh…" I said.

"It'll be fun!" said Rika. "We're all going!"

"Uhm…"

"There's gonna be cakes and cookies, oh and tea of course," said Chiharu.

"Guys…"

"What do you think?" said Naoko.

"I can't…" I said a little loudly. Their faces fell.

"Why…?" asked Tomoyo sadly.

"It's not like I don't want to… it's like I can't…" I said.

"Did you get grounded?" asked Naoko.

"No…!" I said. "It's kind of personal…"

"Is it a guy thing…?" asked Chiharu.

"No…"

"Is it about Li?" asked Rika.

"NO…!"

I blushed furiously from anger. "It's not about that idiotic selfish brat!" I said angrily.

My friends froze.

"Ah…" said Naoko.

"Oh crap…" said Chiharu.

"Uh…" said Naoko.

"Oh dear…" said Tomoyo.

"What are you guys staring at?" I asked. Then I realized that they were staring at something behind me. I slowly turned… fearing the worst.

And it came true… because it was Li.

"Did you say something about me?" he said.

"WAGH!"

"Geez Li, don't scare me like that…" I said clenching my chest. "You freaking scared me…"

"It's what you get if you talk about people behind their backs…" said Li.

"…"

After school we walked to the car (I hid behind Li when Meiling was around).

"Should I pick you up tomorrow after school; like the usual?" he said finally as we reached to his motorcycle.

"Uh… about that…" I said.

"Huh?" said Li.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Why…?" he finally said.

"You sounded exactly like Tomoyo," I said surprised.

"You have to go somewhere?" he said ignoring my comment.

"Yeah, something like that…" I said. "It's kind of important to me… so you can just… hang or something…"

"…"

"Look, you don't even have to pay for me that day… so it's not wasting your money… and besides," I said as I gave him a sarcastic grin. "Tutoring is boring…"

"Not with you," he muttered.

I blinked.

"What?" I said surprised.

"Nothing…" he said as we reached to my house. "See ya."

"Okay… bye…" I said.

I began to close the car door, when Li's hand blocked it. "Where are you going?" he said.

"Uh… it's not important to you…" I said.

"…"

"Okay, bye," I said quickly.

"Hey—" started Li.

But I quickly closed the door and ran to my house.

I closed the front door and peeped on the door hole. He slowly drove away.

"What was… that all about…?" I whispered.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The next morning, I found Toya beginning to put on his sneakers.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"I'm going to get the flowers and pick up Yuki and his grandparents… just wait here and I'll pick you up when I come back," he said.

"Okay…" I said.

"See you squirt," he said as he took the car keys.

"You just never get tired of saying that…" I said dully.

He closed the door… and the house was silent.

I sighed as I looked at my clock. It was three-thirty p.m. Toya is supposed to pick me up in an hour.

"…"

And… an hour past and no Toya. After a few minutes from the hour, I got another phone call. This time, from my brother.

"Hey Sakura," he said. "Sorry, but I think I'll be late, Yuki's grandfather fell and we had to go to the hospital."

"Eh…" I said.

"Sakura, go to the bus and take the ride there, I'll meet you there in about another hour," he said.

"But Toya, I can't go alone!" I said. "You know what happens when I go by myself!"

"I'm sorry Sakura… but I can't do anything… bring a friend or something…" he said.

Then there was someone yelling in the background.

"Hey Toya, can you help me wash the floor? Grandma spilled juice all over…" said Yukito's voice.

"Argh…" said Toya. "Sorry Sakura, I gotta go; take care." Beep.

Oh my god.

No way…

TOYA, YOU DITCHED ME!

Great, now I have to take the bus and go by myself… I hope I don't get crazy like last time…

I took my bag and walked outside, towards the bus station.

I got a call on my cell phone and saw that it was Li.

"Hello?" I said.

"Did you go?" he said.

"No… my brother can't come… so I have to go by myself…" I said. "Ah… I don't want to go…"

"Why not… wherever you're going…" said Li.

"It's scary…" I said.

"Okay now you sound pathetic," said Li.

"Geez Li!" I said angrily. "It's not my fault that I was traumatized from my childhood!"

"Okay fine… whatever…" he said. "Good luck with your fears…"

He hung up.

I placed some cents on the box and sat on a seat at the back of the bus.

Great… nothing but my fears sitting right beside me to my doom…

My phone suddenly vibrated.

"Huh…?" I said. Someone text messaged me.

I looked at my cell and stared. It was from Li.

_**You scared Kinomoto?**_

"You freak…" I muttered as I text messaged back.

_Look up "tramatized" from the dictionary! You better study from that too!_

Li wrote back.

**_You're not my mom._ **

Soon we started text messaging back and forth.

_Yeah, but you have to listen to what I say._

**_Fuck you._**

_You brat._

_**What can I say, I'm demanding.**_

_That's what we called spoiled children._

_**At least I'm not ugly.**_

I stopped messaging him because my stop was called. My stop arrived and when I got out, I got another message.

_**Wow, sorry. I didn't know you'd be so sensitive about your looks.**_

_Wait I arrived. Don't text me back. See you._

He text messaged me once more, but I didn't pick it up.

I walked through the cemetery; yes the cemetery. This was the place Toya and I went seven years ago… but today I guess I had to go by myself.

In front of me were the names that I would always remember.

Fujitaka Kinomoto and Nadeshiko Kinomoto.

"Kinomoto?" said a familiar voice.

I jumped as I turned around What the… it was… Li…

He was wearing a black shirt and pants with a brown jacket and matching gloves.

"Li?" I said startled.

"What are you doing here?" we said at the same time.

"…"

"…"

"This was the important place you wanted to go?" said Li finally.

"Well yeah… but why are you here?" I said.

"I told you," he said. "Well, messaged you that I was going here anyway."

"For what…?" I asked amazed.

"You didn't get it?" he said annoyed.

"I didn't have time to check…" I said.

"I'm just here for my reasons," he said. "What about you?"

"Oh… I'm visiting my parent's graves…" I said slowly.

"Oh…" he said awkwardly.

"Yeah…" I said. "They passed away a long time ago."

There was a bit of silence between us.

"Hey… I'll walk with you… since you're chicken…" he said.

Sweet words mixed with a sense of annoyance. Just perfect. Oh well, at least I won't be walking here by myself.

"_Hahhh…"_

I jumped.

"What's wrong?" said Li as he saw my frightened face.

"D-d-did you h-hear that…?" I whispered.

"Hear what…?" said Li.

"Someone was … like gasping or something… or…" I said gulping.

"I think it's the wind…" said Li.

"N-no… I don't think it was…" I said. "It sounded like… someone was following us…"

"Why are you so afraid?" said Li. "If it's something, it's probably someone who's visiting too or some animal."

"How come you're not afraid?" I asked.

"Because…" said Li slowly. "I saw something… that's worse than this cemetery…."

I drew my breath sharply.

"What…?" I asked.

"You don't need to know," he said.

"Hmph," I said.

We continued walking again. My parent's graves were on top of a hill; a thirty minute walk from where we were. This is probably why Toya and I only visited once, plus the trip was really long.

"_Sakura…"_

Another voice? Where is it coming from…?

"_Sakura… Sakura… Sakura…"_

I stopped walking and turned around. There was nothing but the leaves that have fallen on the empty pavement behind us.

"What… the…"

"_Sakura… Sakura… SAKURA!"_

**Syaoran's POV**

Kinomoto suddenly screamed from and jumped back.

She lost her balance and I caught her from falling. Her face softly hit my chest and she grabbed my jacket.

"What's wrong with you?" I said.

"A voice… that voice…" she croaked.

I pulled her face up and I was a little startled; she was…

"Did something hit you?" I said. "Why are you…?"

"What are you talking about?" she said as her voice began to become stuffy.

She gasped and realized that she had started to cry and her mouth trembled terribly.

"Oh my…" she said. "I didn't…"

She looked distraught; like she was snapping from hypnotism.

"What happened…?" I said.

"I heard… I heard a voice…" she said as her voice was still shaking.

"A voice?"

"Yeah… like something or someone… was calling me…"

"Uh…"

"I'm telling the truth!" she said angrily.

Whoa.

"I didn't say anything…" I said.

"Why… why am I hearing these voices?" she said. "I heard them here a long time ago too…"

"What do you mean…?" I said.

"My brother… said I cried when we came here… and I kept saying that someone was calling me…" she said. "It's still… it's still calling me…!"

"Hey, calm down," I said. "I think you didn't have enough sleep… or you probably ate something weird…"

She looked down as though she was thinking over on what happened.

"Here…" I said. I took off my gloves and gave them to her.

"What am I going to do with these?" she said.

"Can you wait until I explain?" I said impatiently.

"Eh…"

"Wear them."

She did.

"Cover your ears and close your eyes."

"Why…?" she said as she began to close her eyes.

I placed my right arm around her shoulders and pulled her to me.

"Just ignore everything… don't see or hear…" I said. "This will block most of your senses. If you think you're still hearing things, tell me."

"O… okay…" she said.

"I'll lead you the way… don't worry," I said. "Don't try to see or listen… it'll be worse for you."

She pushed herself close to me and we walked up the small shrine on the hill.

Were her parents rich? It's a lot of money just to have your grave at a shrine…

"Li…" Kinomoto whispered.

"Yeah," I said.

"Are we there yet?" she said.

"Don't act like you're five," I said.

"I only asked once," she said.

"It's annoying, even for once," I said.

"You get annoyed easily," she said.

"You get annoying easily," I said back.

Then her cell rang. She slowly picked it up.

"Hello…?" she said. "Oh… yeah… I came with a friend. No… I'm already there. Yes I have them. Hurry up then, it's getting late. Okay, bye."

She hung up and placed her phone away.

"Brother?" I said.

"Yeah… he's coming," she said.

We had already reached to the shrine. "Would you like to pray with me?" she asked.

"Uh… I guess…" I said.

We went inside the shrine, placed flowers, and lighted a few candles.

**Sakura's POV**

We reached my parent's graves and I placed the flowers near the tombstone.

I clasped my hands and prayed…

_I wish for you both to have a peaceful rest._

After a couple of minutes Li was the first to speak.

"How did your parents die?" he asked me quietly.

"They died from sickness…" I said. "So only my brother and I live together."

"I see…" he said. "It must be hard…"

"Not really…" I said. "Well, of course it's very painful at times, but it's only good to have a positive face…"

"Hmm…"

"So Li, you hungry?" I said brightly.

"…"

We sat down on benches and I unpacked lunch. He just looked around as I ate.

"Hey… are you okay now?" he said as I sipped my coke.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said.

"You were kind of crazy before…" he said.

"I'm okay… don't worry… when I go to the shrine… the voices stop…" I said slowly. "It's like… my parents are protecting me."

"Doesn't sound logical," he said. "But believe what you want."

"After this I got to go back…" I said. "So I can check the candles."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The candles were nearly fading (I brought small ones) and I got another call from Toya saying that he was almost there.

"I'm gonna go…" said Li finally, as the sun nearly settled down.

"Oh okay…" I said.

"It was fun… watching you freak," said Li grinning.

"HEY!" I snapped.

"See you wuss," said Li as he got up and started walking.

I decided to ignore what he said.

Then something reminded me.

"Hey Li," I called.

He turned slowly. "Yeah?" he said.

"Thanks… for making being there for me…" I said.

"Hey what are friends for… when one's a wimp," he said. I wanted to sock his face, but he turned and waved as he walked away.

After a few seconds, Toya, from the opposite direction, came to me, breathless with Yukito.

"Sorry we're late," he said. "Yuki's grandma fell when she spilled the juice."

"At least she hit her funny bone," said Yuki smiling.

"Oh I already ate so…" I started.

"No I brought more," said Yuki grinning as he brought two full lunch packs.

"Ah…" I said sweating.

"Hey…" said Toya suddenly.

"What?" I said as Yuki started to gorge himself.

Toya was looking at where Li left. "That guy… maybe I was just seeing things…" he said.

"Huh? Oh, he was my friend who came," I said.

"WHAT? A BOYFRIEND?" said Toya as I ducked for cover.

"NO, HE'S A FRIEND DON'T WORRY!" I yelled back.

"THAT'S WHAT ALL GIRL SAY BEFORE THEY REALIZE THAT THEY JUST MADE OUT WITH THEIR 'FRIEND!'" he shouted.

"EW MAN, YOU'RE JUST GROSS!" I screamed.

"Anyone want pie?" said Yuki.

**To be continued…**

Yay, enjoyed the chapter? Hope you did! Please review! Thanks!


	8. Did I Worry You?

Since today is Christmas I decided to update again today! Merry CHRISTMAS everyone!

**Chapter 8 **

**Did I Worry You?**

**Sakura's POV **

_Sakura…_

_Sakura…_

Ugh… who's calling me?

_Sakura, you don't even remember? That's right, you were—_

Who are you?

_Sakura… it's me…_

_It's…_

RING BEEP RING BEEP…

ARGH THAT SOUND!

Damn alarm clock…

I slowly opened my eyes. The bright rays of the sun hit me like a stream of water, nearly blinding me.

"Ah… so… early…" I whispered as I pushed my little stuffed Kero out of the way.

Everything felt so heavy and cold…

"You're gonna be late for school, monster!" called a familiar voice.

"Stupid Toya…" I muttered as I rubbed my eyes. They were still aching for sleep.

What's wrong with me?

I slowly wobbled downstairs, my legs felt sore as if I had run a mile.

"It's nearly afternoon," said Toya as he handed me a bowl of rice with egg. "Hurry and swallow it like before…"

"Shut up…" I said. My voice sounded stuffy. Toya stared at me. He placed his hand on my forehead.

"Hey are you sick?" he said. "Whoa… you're running a fever…"

"No… I'm not…" I said as I grabbed my chopsticks. "Gimme… a spoon…"

"Here," said Toya as he handed me a spoon and a bowl of miso soup (yum… miso soup…). "You have to stay home… it's pretty bad."

"I'm okay…!" I said. "I'm just… a little weird… that's all…"

Toya sighed.

"Nah… this… isn't that bad… I think…" I said.

"Here… I'll take you on my car…" said Toya. "Geez, you're a stubborn little monster."

"Hmph…" I said as I swallowed hastily on my portion of rice.

**Syaoran's POV **

"Damn it…" I muttered as the steam emerged from the front of the car.

"Engine trouble?" said Eriol as he stared at the rising smoke.

"Yeah, it died on me," I said sighing. "Damn car…"

"What are you gonna do now?" he asked.

"Take the bus I guess…" I replied.

Eriol smiled, but his face turned to a slight frown when he saw what was behind me.

"What's wrong?" I said turning around.

"Kinomoto…?" he said.

Kinomoto was walking weird… as if she never walked before.

"What the…" I said.

"Maybe something's wrong with her…?" said Eriol.

At the end of the school day, I saw her hold a stack of papers… she looked like she was going to faint any minute.

She passed by me with a weak "good afternoon" and quietly walked into the office.

"Hey Kinomoto…" I said. "What's wrong with you today?"

"Is there…. something…. wrong with me?" she asked. "I guess… I have a small fever…"

"How did you get so sick all of a sudden…?" I said.

"I dunno…" she said as she placed the papers on the table.

"Thank you Kinomoto… you really shouldn't have…" said Terada (our teacher).

"It's okay… Mizuki-sensei was busy…" she said.

Sasaki came in and helped Kinomoto get her backpack and books.

"Thank you," said Kinomoto as she took her backpack.

"Be careful," said Sasaki.

"Don't worry about me," said Kinomoto as she smiled. She looked at me and smiled too.

O…kay she's drunk.

"Li… we have… tutoring today… don't we?" she said.

"Uh."

"Let's go…!"

She wobbled out of the door.

"Li… take care of her," Sasaki whispered to me. "I think you should..."

"Yeah I know," I muttered. "Geez…"

"I hope she's okay," she said worriedly.

"Uh, yeah…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Wow… look at the pretty flowers…" said Sakura dreamily as she picked up a couple of sunflowers.

"You're seriously retarded," I said.

Her body quivered violently as she walked toward the bus stop and hummed an odd tune.

Then she paused.

"Hey, you okay?" I said as I saw her face.

It was horrible. Her face… was bright red and she looked like she was dying.

"Hey Li… I don't feel so good," she said softly.

"It's nice that you finally noticed," I said, irritated.

"Syaoran…" she whispered. Her feet gave way.

"Hey…!" I said as she started to fall. I caught her arms and her head rested on mines.

"I think we have to postpone our lesson today…" she said.

"You think?" I said sarcastically.

She began to close her eyes.

"Hey, hey don't faint!" I said. "You can't blackout; we're not even at…"

"I'm so sleepy… just a bit…" she sighed.

"Kinomo…"

"Hey young man, are you boarding?" said the bus driver. People started to board on and some who already sat down stared at us.

"Uh… yeah," I said as I slowly helped Kinomoto go on the stairs.

"Hey who is that hot chick?" said a guy.

Hot? Where? Oh… Kinomoto…

But something hot erupted from my blood.

"She's my GIRLFRIEND you bastard!" I blurted loudly.

"Whoa man sorry…" said the guy.

Ah fuck did I just say that? Damn it.

Good thing there's nobody from our school here.

What the hell… what made me say that?

I carefully settled her down on the seat next to me. She gave a small groan and rested her head on my shoulder.

"Syaoran…" she whispered.

"…Yeah?"

"I'm sorry… I really am…"

"You can't stop germs from making hell for you… you know."

"No… not that…"

I was confused.

"What?"

"Aren't you mad… at me…?"

"For what… make sense idiot."

"I called you 'Syaoran' when you told me not to…"

There was a short silence as I stared at her. Her eyes were still closed, but they were in a sad sort of way. I never really noticed that she started calling me that.

"When you told me… not to call you that anymore… you got mad…" she said. "You're pissed aren't you…?"

"Er…" I said. "That's not…"

I paused.

Wow her fever really got her; she's getting upset for that little thing. Did I sound that angry…?

"Don't be stupid," I muttered. "I… I wasn't mad…"

"…"

I sighed.

"Hey… don't… worry I wasn't mad… back then," I said. "I was just… you know… maybe a little stupid because of those guys… if you wanted to call me Syaoran…"

I closed my eyes and my mouth curved to a…

"You… you can call me Syaoran… if you want… okay…?"

"…"

"Uh…" I opened my eyes to look at her. "Kinomoto…?"

She was asleep. This whole time… she was…

My temper flared.

Damn you…

"YOU…!" I started.

"Hey pipe down lover boy!" said a guy at the back. "Can't you see your girlfriend's asleep?"

"Yeah what kind of boyfriend are you?" said one.

"Selfish," muttered another. People started to murmur.

I laughed nervously as I wrapped my arms around Kinomoto's.

You idiot it's your entire fault… damn it.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"L-Li…?" Kinomoto whispered weakly.

"Yeah…?" I said.

"Where… are we…?"

"We're going to your house… I'm dropping you off…"

"I slept… a lot…"

"You sure did."

"Am I… heavy?"

"Not really."

I was carrying her on my back.

"You have keys?" I said.

"Yeah…" she said. "I'll… get off…"

I let her down and she slowly walked to her door and opened it.

I took her bag and walked inside.

"Hey what are you doing…?" I said as I saw her walk to the kitchen.

"I have to make dinner…" she said.

"But you're still sick…" I said.

"I think… I feel a bit better…" she said as she washed her hands and took out eggs from the refrigerator. "It's not so bad…"

"Shyea right," I said as I took off my jacket.

"Can you pass me… that plate…?" she said as she took a small bowl. She pointed at the cupboard next to me.

"Yeah… sure…" I said as I opened it and took a plate. "Hey Kinomoto… I don't think you should be making dinner… why don't you ask your—"

Suddenly there was a sound of glass breaking.

"What the…"

I turned and saw Kinomoto on the floor with shards of the bowl everywhere.

"Hey Kinomoto!" I yelled as I grabbed her. She fainted… and her left hand was bloody because of the glass.

"Damn it… hey!" I said as I shook her a bit. "Fuck! C'mon Kinomoto… hang in there…!"

I felt her forehead; it was scorching hot.

I rushed her to her bed. "Damn it Kinomoto you liar…" I said as I wiped her hand with a damp cloth I found in the kitchen. I washed the cloth with cold water and placed it on her forehead.

After a few minutes she opened her eyes while I was bandaging her hand with some cloth that I found at the kitchen again. (Man her kitchen sure is convenient…)

**Sakura's POV**

My eyes were so heavy; as though someone attached them with weights.

"Kinomoto… Kinomoto…?" he said. I looked at his face… it was odd…

"Ah… Li… I think… I fainted…?" I whispered. My voice was so small… hardly able to hear.

"You think?" he said. "You fell… and look… you were bleeding!"

"Oh…" I said. I turned and looked at my bandaged hand. The bleeding stopped, yet the stinging remained.

Li… why… why is your voice so shaky? Why… why do you…sound… so weird? My hand; it's only scratched a bit…

His face…

"Well… it's only some scratches" I said. "It's not that…"

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?" he exclaimed suddenly. "YOU SCARED THE HELL OUT OF ME!"

I stared at him. Silence.

He looked away… as though he realized he said too much.

"Li… I'm… I'm sorry…" I said sadly. I never… wanted this…

"STOP…!" he said a little too loudly. He sighed.

"Stop…. saying sorry," he said again as he tried to lower his voice. "It's… it's not your fault."

My eyes were closing and opening consecutively every few seconds.

"Hey I'm… I'm getting you medicine. It's really bad…" he said. "Where is your brother?"

"He's… he's taking… late shifts…" I replied in a soft voice.

"Damn… do you know his phone number?" he asked.

"It's… near the phone…" I said. "But…"

"Hold on," he said as he ran to the phone.

There was a piece of paper next to the phone with "emergency" scribbled on and a phone number with an extension; Toya's work phone.

"DAMN IT!" he said suddenly as he smashed the receiver down. "Damn holds…"

He grabbed my jacket and took his wallet. "Hey I'm getting your medicine, stay tough Kinomoto!" he said.

"Wait…!" I started, but he already bolted out of the door.

**Syaoran's POV**

Damn… I think I was a bit…

I said too much…

I shook my head vigorously. "Crap… Kinomoto… hang on…" I murmured. "I'm… going to get you some medicine."

It was getting late and most of the pharmacies were closed.

"ARGH…!" I said as I ran every block near the house. No sign.

I ran to a corner of a block where I heard there was a small store with most medicines. I turned to the corner and almost bumped… into Meiling…

Ugh… not you… not now…

"Li-kun!" she said surprised.

"Hi Meiling…" I said quickly as I looked around. The store was a few yards away; I tried to rush there, but she grabbed my arm.

"Aw Li-kun… we haven't talked in the longest time…!" she said. "I missed you…!"

"Stop Meiling, I have to do something right now," I said as I tried to get her grip off and headed to the shop at the same time.

"Li… come one let's hang out," she said in her fake sweet voice. "I'll pay for the karaoke!"

"Not now Meiling," I said as waited on the crossing border.

"Aww come on Li-kun… you love it!" she said. The signal was on and I tried to go across, but she grabbed my arm again.

"Meiling what are you…"

"Li-kun let's go eat… treat me!" she said.

"Stop Meiling I have to go…" I said. The signal was blinking.

"No," she said stubbornly. "I'm not letting you go… go with me…!"

The signal started to fade.

"Li-kun…!" she started.

The signal was gone.

"FUCK!" I said.

My anger was boiling… but I was thinking about Kinomoto.

And it… wasn't that strong… anymore.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Stop bothering me Meiling, you're getting annoying," I said. "Just leave me alone."

"Li… kun…?" she whispered.

I ran around for another cross road and arrived at the store right before they were going to close.

"I need medicine…" I gasped.

"For who…?" asked the clerk. "Family…?

I said what I thought earlier.

"Girlfriend,"I said. Agh I keep saying that!

After a brief discussion of her symptoms, he gave me a strong cold medicine and at the corner I saw Meiling.

Her eyes were on the verge of tears.

"You… you have a girlfriend?" she said.

"Not now Meiling," I said.

She grabbed my arm again.

"It's that Kinomoto bitch isn't it?" she said. "You… you love her?"

"Stop it Meiling!" I shouted. "Get out of my way." I pushed her aside and ran back towards Kinomoto's house.

I heard Meiling calling me, but I ignored.

Oh great… after all this time… I could have said she was my sister. I'm so STUPID!

Why did I think of girlfriend…

It can't be that I…

No… I don't…

After what seemed like hell, I finally managed to reach her house. I ran up the stairs and to her bedroom.

She woke up when I approached her. "Hey Li…" she said.

"You feeling any better…?" I said.

"Kinda…" she said smiling.

"Here…" I held her head up and gave her the pills with a bottle of water.

"Thanks…" she said as she settled down on the bed again.

"Er… yeah…" I said placing the water bottle on the headboard.

"Li… I gotta… clean up the mess I made…" she said.

"No… I'll do it…"

"And… it's really hot…"

"Ah geez…"

I carried her on my back downstairs and let her lay on the couch. Then I started to tackle to mess in the kitchen.

It was nine in the evening… and I was sweating like crazy, but I finally finished cleaning the blood stains. Kinomoto was asleep, so I brought a chair and sat next to her.

I looked at her face.

She was looking better… it wasn't so much puffy looking than before…

The medicine was working…

I touched her forehead.

Yeah… it's not so hot anymore…

"Hey you idiot… you scared the hell out of me you know that?" I whispered. I touched her cheeks.

She sighed and I jerked my hand away. What was I thinking, doing that? Geez…

"Li…" she said. She opened her eyes again.

"Go to sleep," I said. "I'll leave…"

She smiled. "Thank you…" she said. "You're so… nice…"

"Hmph," I said.

"By the way… what took you so long…?" she asked.

"Huh? What do you mean…?"

"The medicine… what took you…?"

"Hey give me a break, all the pharmacies were closed."

"Pharmacies…? I have medicine… here…."

Those words made me freeze.

"You… what…?" I said my voice cracking in anger.

"I have medicine here… I was going to tell you but you left…" she said.

I crashed to the floor.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Not so loud, man…" she said as she tried to cover her ears with her pillow.

**To be continued…**

Wow, Chapter 8 is done. If you've noticed I've made the story more into Syaoran's POV because some chapters are mostly Sakura's. Ahahaha…

Please review! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Oh yeah and please read my new story, **Love Letters of Tokyo**! This is my newest story!


	9. Love Her, Hate Him

Whoo! Updated chapter here! Please enjoy!

**Chapter 9**

**Love Her, Hate Him**

**Syaoran's POV**

"_Syaoran… Syaoran… do you know… when a teddy bear's birthday is?"_

"_No… when is it?"_

"_When you put a ribbon to it and give it a name… it becomes his birthday!"_

"_Ah…"_

"_And when you give it to someone you love… and they name the bear after you… their love will be returned."_

"_I see."_

"_Syaoran… may I give you a teddy bear?"_

My eyes snapped open, and were greeted by the familiar darkness of early morning.

I sat up and rubbed my forehead from the sweat. Beside me was a clock that showed the luminous numbers: 5:00.

It was so early but… that girl… that voice...

"What the hell… was that…?" I muttered aloud.

**Sakura's POV**

"Sakura-chan… do you feel better?" said Tomoyo worriedly.

"Oh yeah, I'm feeling a lot better… the medicine Li gave me worked great," I said smiling widely.

"That's good to hear," said Rika smiling.

"Then Sakura-chan… are you going to the festival dance tonight?" asked Naoko.

"Oh… eh…" I started.

"Oh course she's going; everyone is," said Chiharu.

"Well… uh…" I said.

"Are you going with anyone? Is it Li?" asked Rika.

"Well… no…" I said.

"EH?" they all said in unison.

"Er… I don't plan on going," I said.

"What? Why?" said Tomoyo as the rest stared at me.

"Well… I…" I started.

"Is it because you don't have a date?" said Chiharu. "It's a couple dance after all."

"More like a wannabe ball," said Naoko nodding. They all began to mutter.

"GUYS," I said as loudly as I can, but not so loud as a scream. They all stopped talking and froze.

"I'm not going… because… I'm… well, I don't want to," I said.

"…"

Then they exploded.

"Are you insane?" said Chiharu.

"It's the last dance!" said Rika.

"Everyone's going!" said Naoko.

"The school year is almost ending," said Tomoyo. "It would be nice if you had some fun before the end…"

"Ah… well… eh…" I stuttered.

"Hey Kinomoto," said a voice.

I turned around and saw a pretty cute guy smile at me. It was Ishimaru Kazuma; a classmate.

"Do you want to go to the dance with me?" he said.

I froze. Whoa! A guy asking me out! WOW!

I blushed. "Uh…" I said.

Why am I hesitating? I shouldn't be… I should say… 'YES'

But… something is making me stop. But what?

"Hey, I'll pick you up at eight-thirty, don't be late," he said grinning. Then he turned and sat on his seat.

"Then it's settled!" said Chiharu. "Now you have to go Sakura-chan!"

"Ah… fine…" I said, sighing.

"Hey Li, are you going to the dance?" said Eriol suddenly. I turned around and saw Li just come in drop his backpack on his desk.

He looked at me. Then said, "Probably not."

"Eh, why?" said Eriol.

"Uh… it's a little lame," said Li.

"Oh… but Takashi and I are going," said Eriol. "Aren't a lot of girls asking you out?"

"Uh… yeah I guess. But I said nothing but 'no' this whole morning," said Li. "But…"

"Li-kun!" said a familiar annoying voice. Li sighed.

"What is it Meiling?" he said.

"Go to the dance with me," she said grasping his arm. "It's going to be so fun!"

"Uh… I don't—" started Li.

"C'mon Li," said Takashi who sat down next to him. "Ishimaru is going with Kinomoto and I'm going with Chiharu."

Li stared at me.

"Sure Meiling, I'll go with you," he said suddenly. Meiling smiled.

I stared.

Li turned away from me and sat down.

What's his… problem?

"Hm…" said Tomoyo staring at Li.

"What's wrong?" I said.

"Oh nothing," said Tomoyo as the bell rang.

**Syaoran's POV**

Hmm… so Kinomoto is going with Ishimaru.

I didn't think she'd even get a date.

"Hey Li," said a voice. I turned and saw Kinomoto looking at me with a questioned look.

"What?" I said looking away.

"Hey are you mad because I got a date?" she asked.

"No, why would I?" I said.

"Well, you're face was kind of pissed…" she said.

"I'm not pissed," I said, my voice shook a little impatiently. The next words made me blurt it out… knowing that it would make her mad.

"And I'm glad… I'm glad I'm going with Meiling!"

Her face twisted to anger. "You don't have to rub it on my face!" she said. "And I'm glad I'm going with Kazuma!"

"Oh so you're ditching the formalities now? Are you his bitch?" I said.

"No I'm not!" she said. "Don't get mad because people like me!"

"I think he only asked you out because he felt bad for you!" I said.

"That's not true and if you were so angry, you should've asked me out first!" she snapped, and stomped off.

I stared.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Hmph what was her fucking problem?

"Don't get mad… just because I was right," I muttered as I collapsed on the couch.

There was a knock on the door.

"Who is it…?" I said.

It opened and I saw my mother. "Don't you have tutoring today?" she asked.

"No… she's going on a 'date'..." I said annoyed as I made quotes with my hands.

"Oh? I thought she was going out with you?" she said.

"What? Don't be stupid Mom," I said standing up. "She's too nerdy."

"I think she's cute," she said. "And she reminds me of someone…"

"Huh, so you do pay attention," I said.

"Syaoran… are you still…?" she asked.

"Yes," I interrupted. She frowned.

"I did it for the best… and I didn't know what was going to happen—"

"Well if people did stupid shit like that wouldn't you be pissed off as well?" I said sharply.

"Syaoran…" said Yelan.

"Get out of my room," I said turning away. "I want you out of my sight."

"…"

The door closed and there was silence again. Then I lied on my bed and opened my cell.

Mom… don't act stupid… I know what happened.

"_Mother… where is she? Where did you take her?"_

"_She's going away. She has to… it's for the best."_

"_What are you doing Mom! What's wrong with you?"_

"_Syaoran… don't cry… please… I know it's hard but…"_

"_You don't know ANYTHING!"_

**Sakura's POV**

Hmph what was his freaking problem?

"Don't get mad… just because I was right," I whispered as I flopped on my bed.

I opened my cell and tried to text… Li…

Wait. Why should I text him? What's wrong with me? I have Kazuma…

He's so sweet and kind…

_Ring Ring Ring!_

"Huh…?" I said as I looked at my cell. It was from Kazuma.

_Hey Kinomoto-san. How are you? I miss you already._

"Aw…" I whispered. He's SO SWEET!

I text him back.

_Hey Kazuma-kun. I'm good, just a little mad at someone right now. Thanks for worrying! _

A few seconds later…

_Ah really? What's bothering you?_

_Ah it's nothing. I just fought with my friend a little._

_Aw, I hope you feel better. I wanna hug you right now. Will that make you feel better?_

IS HE THE SWEETEST GUY OR WHAT?

I sighed and looked at the new text messages that popped out again. Then my smile turned into a disgusted frown.

_Hey idiot you forgot our lesson today._

Stupid… damn… Li…

_Sorry I was busy._

_Keep track on what you're doing for once._

_You're such a freaking brat._

Two text messages came out at once. One from Kazuma and one from Li.

Kazuma's:

_I'll take that as a yes. Next time I see you I'll hug you right on the spot!_

Then from Li:

_Next time I'm only paying you half. So be a good little girl and come on time now okay?_

I texted back:

_Listen you little fag, you can't just give me half, you owe me full price. You're lucky I'm not even taking double because you didn't even call me before. So be a good little boy and listen to what other people ask for once, you snot!_

"Hehheh…" I said as I pushed the SEND key triumphantly. But then…

I gasped as I saw who the text was sent. IT WENT TO KAZUMA!

"Oh my god," I said as I texted my ass off to him.

_Sorry, that wasn't for you! But I'll be looking forward to it!_

But… that one WENT TO LI!

"WHAT THE HECK?" I said.

One for Kazuma:

_Oh my god Kazuma-kun that wasn't for you! I'm sorry!_

One for Li:

_Wait it WAS for you! I texted the wrong thing to you before! You're still a little brat!_

Both of them texted me at once again. Surprisingly it was the same sentence.

_Who else is writing to you?_

"Crap," I muttered.

To Kazuma:

_Oh it's no one don't worry._

I added a heart icon at the end and sent it.

Then to Li:

_None of you business!_

No icon.

They both messaged me once more.

Kazuma:

_Oh okay. Then I'll see you tomorrow!_

Li:

_Whatever it's not like I give a damn._

I sighed. This is so weird…

**Syaoran's POV**

"Hey Meiling… I'm not going to the dance tonight… ask someone else," I said on my phone.

"What? Why?" she said back.

"I don't feel like okay? Just ask someone else. Later." I hung up.

Then I got a call from Eriol.

"Yeah?" I said.

"Why did you turn down Meiling? You finally going to Sakura-san?" he said.

"How did you know I wasn't…?" I started.

"Once something happens that involves Meiling she spreads the news in about a few seconds," said Eriol.

"Oh yeah…" I said.

I heard Eriol chuckle a bit.

"Well I'm not going," I said.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because…"

"You wanted to go with Sakura-san didn't you?"

"…"

"Ha, so that was it…"

"Wait, NO! Not that!"

"Uh huh… sure."

"Shut up man."

"Sakura-san's really cute isn't she? It's hard not to like her, even for you."

"No, it's just…"

"Hey dude… just go. If you're really that uncomfortable you can just hang out with the guys."

"Maybe," I said, and I hung up.

I got another call again; this time, it was Daidouji. Huh… how did she get my cell? Probably from Eriol…

"Li… are you mad at Sakura-chan right now?" she asked.

"Aren't I always?" I said sarcastically.

There was a pause from her end.

"Uh… not really," I said.

"Hmm… so are you really going with Meiling?" she said.

"No… I'm not going at all," I said.

"Why not?" she asked.

"What is up with you people asking me that? It's because I don't wanna go okay?" I said irritated.

"Li, you should go," she said. "I know it's selfish but… I don't want her to be with him."

"Her? Him?" I said.

"Ah never mind. Anyway, you should go… besides… I'm sure you want to," she said. "You're just not realizing it."

I sighed.

**Sakura's POV**

"Eh… how is this?" I said.

"JUST DARLING!" sighed Tomoyo as she marveled at my dress. "It suits you perfectly!"

"You look so adorable!" said Rika.

"And beautiful altogether!" said Naoko.

"Don't forget your mask!" said Chiharu as she fitted a small pink eye mask on me.

"Ahaha… thanks guys," I said blushing from embarrassment. We were at the girl's bathroom, getting ready for the dance. Everyone was dressed up so formally, and it was a rule of the dance to weak a mask (Chiharu said it brings out the fun, but I don't get it…).

"This will be so fun…!" said Tomoyo.

"Aha… yeah," I said.

"Wow Kinomoto-san… you look beautiful," said a voice behind me. I turned and saw Kazuma dressed in his suit and a red mask.

"You look beautiful too," I said, my last words sounded awkward.

Kazuma laughed. "Funny and cute," he said smiling. "Just my type."

I blushed. Tomoyo was recording me. Naoko smiled. Rika beamed. Yamazaki was going to say something, but Chiharu punched him and then smiled as well.

"Well… is it okay I can take her?" he asked Tomoyo.

"She's all yours," she said. "But make sure her dress doesn't wrinkle!"

"Okay," he said. Then to me he asked, "Shall we dance?"

"Sure…!" I said. "I'm not that good though."

"It's okay… you can hug me if you want to," he whispered. "And I'll lead the rest of the way."

"Okay," I said, blushing a bit.

The song was not that slow, but at an even pace. It was fun, even though Kazuma was the one who did most of the dancing.

Tomoyo was dancing with Eriol, Chiharu with Yamazaki, Rika with a teacher (Mr. Terada?), and Naoko was in charge of the food so she just watched us.

Then the DJ did another song as a break and Kazuma and I sat on a table.

"Hey you were pretty good!" said Kazuma. "You can dance."

"Eh, not really," I said fanning myself from the heat.

"Hey Sakura-chan, I need Kazuma to help with the food," said Naoko. "Do you mind if I take him for a bit?"

"Oh, it's okay go ahead," I said.

"Ah Kinomoto-san, I'll get us some drinks when I'm done," he said as he walked to the food tables.

"Okay, see you!" I said smiling.

I just watched my friends dance on the next song and laughed when Chiharu nearly strangled Yamazaki when he tried to say a fact about dancing too much.

"Hey are you alone?" said a voice.

Hmm that voice…

I looked up and saw a guy with a black mask on.

Wow he was kinda hot.

"Will you dance with me?" he asked offering his hand.

"Uh…" I said.

Eh I'm sure Kazuma won't really mind.

"Sure… but I suck," I said smiling, taking it.

"Don't worry about that," he said smiling a bit. Then something hit me. No not physically... but a feeling.

This feeling...

I felt it before...

But when?

Then when we went on the dance floor the DJ started slow songs.

"Huh?" I said.

The guy slowly wrapped his hand on my waist and grasped my hand softly. "This kind isn't so hard," he said.

"Oh… uh…" I said blushing. His face was barely touching mines and he held me close.

He was right. It wasn't that hard; the guy showed me a pattern of the dance and as soon as I got the hang of it, I didn't need to use his feet anymore as guidance…

Tomoyo recorded again. "Aren't you cute Sakura-chan…" she whispered.

Then there was a part where I spun around and I tripped on his foot. "Whoa," he said as he caught me.

One more centimeter and our faces would be touching. It was so weird. It looked like we were kind of hugging…

"Ah… I'm sorry," I whispered as the song ended.

"It's okay," he said, but he didn't let me go.

"Um…" I said.

He placed a hand on my cheek.

"Oh…" I said blushing more furiously.

"Do you…" he started. He pressed his body on mines. "…want me…" He leaned on to my lips. "…to pull away…?"

I closed my eyes shut and felt his lips brush only slightly against mine—

"Hey Kinomoto-san…" said a voice. The guy quickly let go of me and looked at my left. It was Kazuma.

"Hey… uh… I got you your drink…" he said staring at the guy.

"Oh Kazuma-kun… we were just…" I started.

"Just teaching my friend how to dance that's all," said the guy grinning as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

"Huh… friend?" I said. "Do I…?"

"Sheesh Kinomoto, you're so thick," he said and took off his mask.

"L-L-LI?" I gasped staring.

"The one and only," he said putting his mask back on.

"I thought you were going with… Meiling," I said.

I thought… he was hot.

"Well I wasn't gonna go anyway, but… meh," he said shrugging.

Oh my god I thought he was HOT!

"Ah… oh…" I said the heat rising to my face again. Was he going to kiss me? That was so weird!

"Hey what's wrong Kinomoto, you sick again?" he asked trying to touch my forehead.

"Oh n-no," I said dodging his hand. He stared, but with a weird look on his face.

Li… what were you trying to do?

"Ahh the dance is already ending," said Chiharu sadly.

"Well it was fun," said Rika smiling.

The crowds were leaving and the some of the cleaning crew started picking up trash.

Rika, Naoko, Chiharu, and Yamazaki left early. The other guys helped put the tables away.

Tomoyo went to me and we were alone at a corner. "Sakura-chan, you're red… what happened?" she asked.

"Well… I kinda… danced with Li," I said. She smiled.

"That's nice," she said.

"No, it's not…!" I said. "It's… it's weird!"

"How so?" she said.

"W-well before… before I knew who he was… from that mask… I… well… I kind of thought he was…" I started.

"Cute?" she asked. I nodded, blushing to a cherry. She beamed.

"Why is that weird?" she asked.

"Well I don't know… I guess because we fight and stuff I didn't really..." I said. Then I finally remembered something. That feeling before... I felt it at the play. When Li was acting all kind...

I guess I sort of... liked that feeling...

NO!

Argh, stupid Li and your wannabe-nice-personality crap!

"Sakura-chan… there are a lot of things in the world that we don't understand," she said. "So…"

She placed her hand with mine on my chest. "Whatever decision you make… pick the one your heart feels better towards to," she said smiling. "And… I think that is the best way."

"Okay… thank you Tomoyo-chan," I said. I sort of didn't get that. What did she mean by...?

She nodded. "See you tomorrow Sakura-chan!" she said. She and Eriol went on her limousine and drove away.

"Kinomoto, you need a ride home?" said Li as he went to me.

"Oh… uh…!" I said.

"Oh, I'm taking her home," said Kazuma.

"Do you even know where she lives?" said Li slightly glaring at the guy.

"Guys…" I said.

"Kinomoto-san… which one of us would you like to take you home?" he asked.

"Ah," I said.

Oh no…

WHAT SHOULD I DO?

"_Whatever decision you make… pick the one your heart feels better towards to."_

Tomoyo-chan... were you talking about this?

I closed my eyes for a second. Then I looked at Li.

"I'm sorry…" I said.

**To be continued…**

Hey guys, I hoped you enjoyed! Please review as always. Oh, and try out my new story **Love Letters of Tokyo**! Another CCS fanfic that I made!


	10. Last Lesson

Hello all! I present Chapter 10! Yay! Anyway, enjoy!

**Chapter 10**

**Last Lesson**

**Sakura's POV**

I turned to Li. "I'm sorry…" I said.

Then I turned to Kazuma. "I'm going to go…"

Kazuma smiled as Li stared at me.

"… take the bus."

"Hah?" said Li and Kazuma at the same time with blank expressions.

"Eh, I have to do something," I added. "So yeah… I'm sorry…"

Li stared at me. I turned away from his gaze and looked at Kazuma.

"Kazuma-kun, thanks for tonight… but I'm sorry, I really need to go…" I said.

Kazuma gave me a warmer smile. "It's okay Kinomoto-san… I understand," he said. "I'll see you later."

I felt better when he said that. "Well… bye guys, I had fun," I said. I turned and walked outside, towards the bus stop. I heard Kazuma and Li leave as well and go on opposite directions.

Eh… after I get home… I'm going straight to sleep. I'm so tired…

I sat down on the seat and shivered. Damn, my dress is gay, it's so freaking cold.

"Yo," said Li's voice and I jumped.

**Syaoran's POV**

"Li?" said Kinomoto in surprise as she saw me.

"Sup idiot," I said as I sat next to her.

"Wh-what are you doing here…" she said staring.

"What do you think, I'm going with you," I said.

"What?" she said perplexed.

"You just wanted to go home didn't you?" I said quietly.

"…"

"Why didn't you want Ishimaru to take you home?" I asked. "He seems… nice…" I spoke slowly at my last words.

"Eh I just… I just wanted to go by myself," she whispered.

"Sure you did," I said looking up. "You… weren't comfortable with him."

"Huh…?" she said.

"Is it something I did?" I said as I looked at her. She looked into my eyes, as though she wasn't sure what she thought I did herself.

"Li…" she said.

The bus honked impatiently. "Oh…" said Kinomoto. She stood up. "I'll see you later," she said hurriedly and started to run to the bus. I grabbed her wrist.

She looked at me.

"I wasn't kidding," I said as I stood up. "Let's go." I dragged her up the steps and we sat at the near end of the bus.

"Hey it's that self-centered guy with his girlfriend," whispered some people.

Uh oh.

"What…?" said Kinomoto looking around.

Most of the people in the bus looked at us and muttered to each other.

Holy shit.

"Don't listen to them," I whispered.

"Oh… okay," said Kinomoto. I felt her arms which were cold and forming bumps.

"Hey, are you cold?" I said.

"Y-yeah sorta," she said.

"Here…" I said annoyed as I took off my jacket and placed it around her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said.

"The selfish guy is nice though," I heard one person say. People started to mutter again then, to my horror, they applauded.

"Li… what are they talking…?" she started.

"Ah nothing!" I said as I laughed forcefully. Then in a soft whisper, "Bus people are crazy."

"I see…" she said staring at me in a weird way. Crap, I guess I deserve that look…

But she turned to look outside the window. Phew…

Damn people…

I sighed as I looked at the other window.

I guess Kinomoto passed out before I said all that stuff when she was sick.

**Sakura's POV**

Li is weird. I mean… very abnormal today… er, tonight…

I touched my cheeks and flinched in surprise. It was cold, but my cheeks were burning.

Why…?

Is it because… of the dance. He almost kissed me.

"Hey," he said abruptly. I jumped again and cursed myself for reacting that way. Why do I always jump when he talks? Maybe because he sorta sounds like he's pissed.

I wish his tone was like that time at the play… he sounded…

Well, I hate to admit it… really sweet.

WAIT A MINUTE SAKURA! YOU SAID TO YOURSELF THAT YOU WOULDN'T GIVE IN TO HIS STUPID CRAP!

I shook my head and I looked at him, but he was looking at the other window.

"Wh-what?" I said.

"Hm?" he said looking at me. The temperature of my skin rose up to about a few degrees.

"What?" he said.

"Didn't you say something?" I said.

"Nope," he said looking away again.

"…"

I stared at him. And about a second later, I saw his eyes look at me and he grinned. "I'm just kidding Kinomoto," he said facing me again.

"Hmph," I said looking away.

"Wow you take things so seriously," he said.

"Well I can't take everything as a joke," I said.

"The best thing is to hope everything was a joke," he said slowly.

I stared. What the… what did he mean by that? Everything…?

"What…?" I said aloud.

"Oh yeah," he interrupted. "I remembered what I was gonna tell you."

"Hm?" I said mildly interested.

"You suck at dancing."

"Thanks…" I said sarcastically my interest plummeting down.

"I'm just kidding," he repeated, now amused. "But it's more of a question."

"What?" I said.

"Do you know… when a teddy bear's birthday is?" he asked.

"Huh…?" I said.

"You're supposed to answer the question dumbass," he said.

"I know but… I was just…" I started. Why did he ask this kind of question?

"Well… sorta," I said truthfully. He stared at me, and then bemused, he said, "Then tell me."

"Isn't it when… you give it a ribbon and a name?" I said slowly as I tried to remember.

"Where did you hear it from?" he said suddenly.

"Oh… an old friend," I said. "I learned that before I moved to Osaka."

"You came from Osaka?" he said.

"Yeah, why?" I said.

"Eh, just saying," he said. "It's just…" He paused. "No, it's nothing," he repeated.

The bus finally stopped near the street to my house.

"Hey… isn't you house far away?" I asked.

"I'll manage," he said as he walked out with me.

"About the bear thing… is there anything else that you knew about?" he said. What's with him and the bear? What a weirdo.

"No," I said truthfully. "I think that's all I know."

"I see…" he said.

My feet were aching from the heels and my thighs were sore from the constant walking and dancing. We walked for about fifteen minutes from the bus to my house. Yes, it was far.

To my relief, my house was just a few yards away. I saw Toya wave to me then he stopped and looked at Li.

"Oh uh… I guess I gotta go," I said. Toya would probably not like this…

"Right," said Li as if he read my mind. "See you tomorrow… I guess."

I started to walk towards my house.

"Oh yeah, Kinomoto," he said suddenly.

"Hm?" I said as I looked back at him.

"I… I… uh…" he said. "This is kind of stupid but…"

He looked into my eyes. "I kind of wanted you to name that bear that I gave you…" he said. His last words drifted off, so I could barely hear him.

"Wait, you what?" I said.

"Nothing…" he said as his gaze ripped from mines. "See ya geek."

He walked back to the where the bus dropped us off.

What the heck?

"Hey Sakura… who was that?" said Toya.

"Yeah hi to you too," I said dully.

"Oh yeah hi," he said grinning.

I decided to ignore what had happened in the past five seconds.

"His name is Li Syaoran," I said. "He was just dropping me off."

"Wait… Syaoran Li?" said Toya.

"Yeah… why?" I asked.

"Uh… nothing," said Toya.

"I'm his tutor," I added, knowing that would ease a bit of his temper. "So I have to hang out with him and stuff…"

"…"

He was lost in thought. Something bugged him.

"Hey, it's not like we're going out," I said suddenly.

"No… it's not that," he said. "Uh… how long have you known him?"

"Huh? Oh… I just met him when I started Seijyu," I said. "Less than a year I guess."

"Are you friends with him?" he asked.

"Uh I guess so…" I said. Geez what's wrong with everyone today? First the teddy bear thing and now this!

"I see…" he said. "Well, whatever, get in. You're probably cold."

"What's wrong?" I said as we walked in the house.

"It's nothing," he said.

I sneezed. Outside was colder than I thought.

"Watch it!" said Toya as I sneezed near him.

**Syaoran's POV**

Damn why did I say that…

That was lame.

"Why did I say that…?" I said aloud as I threw myself on the bed. I looked at my cell phone and grimaced.

Meiling called me ten messages.

"That girl…" I muttered as I sat up. "Huh?"

There was a text message from Kinomoto.

_Hey Li I had a great time today. Even though I sucked at dancing you still danced with me. Thanks. Oh and by the way, tomorrow is our last lesson isn't it? I guess I'll just cover all the chapters then. Anyway, see you tomorrow. Good night._

I felt myself smile as I read the message. Huh…

I forgot tomorrow is our last lesson. Time really flies by.

I started to text her back.

_No problem I had a great time too. See you tomorrow._

I stared at the message. Hmm…

**Sakura's POV**

My cell phone beeped a message call. I saw a text from Li.

_Yeah whatever, I had to help you back there or you would've crashed into someone and messed up everything. See you later._

I nearly crushed my cell in anger. The nerve of him…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hey," said Li as the bell rang. "I guess we better go."

"Er yeah…" I said.

There was a silence. Uh…

"Uh…" I said aloud.

"What?" said Li.

I sighed. "Never mind," I said as I walked out of the class. He walked by me across the hall…

… and we saw Meiling with two of her friends. Perfect…

"What are you doing here Meiling?" said Li, his tone bored as though he had asked the same question too many times.

"You lied to me," she said looking at him in the eyes. He didn't even flinch.

"About what?" he said, his eyes lazily staring into hers.

"You said you couldn't go to the dance, but I saw you dancing with Kinomoto!" she said looking at me.

"…?"

My eyes went sort of blank. He canceled?

"Uh so?" he said.

Huh?

"Why did you lie to me?" she said, her voice rising in anger.

"Maybe because I wanted to," he said.

Uh…

Instead of looking at him, she walked to me. "Because of you Li-kun couldn't go with me!" she screeched. "You stupid bitch!"

"What the…" I said. "I didn't ask him to go with me!"

"Yeah right, you wanted to hog him all by yourself!" she cried.

"You're the stupid one you IDIOT!" I snapped. "You were so annoying to Syaoran that he got sick of you and went to me!"

I froze. Uh-oh. Did I say that?

"YOU BITCH!" she screamed as she slapped me so hard I nearly lost my balance.

That did it.

"THAT'S IT!" I cried, and punched her on the face with all my might which made her fall to the ground. My fist stung, probably because my knuckles hit her cheekbone. Whatever, at least she had more pain than I did.

I felt one of the girls pull me down by my hair and another punched me on the face. I grabbed the girl who punched me by the hair and pushed her away from me. She quickly recovered and pounced on me again.

"Hey…!" I heard Li say. I felt a pair of sharp tipped fingers reached up my neck and started to choke me.

I coughed for air and my vision became blurry.

Suddenly, the girl who had me by the hair screamed and I was released. I turned and saw Li hold the two girls down and throw them both to the ground.

"It's your entire fault!" Meiling cried as I saw, satisfied, her bloody lip and bruised face. She had finally gotten up and rushed to me, her face mixed with blood and tears.

"How is it my fault, I didn't do anything!" I said. "I'm just helping out a friend here!"

Unfortunately for me, I was weak from trying to get her bitches off of me but I stood rigid when she raised her hand to slap me again.

"Don't lie to me! You like him too!" she said bringing down her hand towards my face. "And he only hangs out with you because you look like—"

Her voice and motion was cut off.

"Li-kun stop that, it hurts," said Meiling all of a sudden.

I blinked and saw that Li had grabbed Meiling's wrist that was going to hit me; his grip tightened as he spoke.

"You say the next word… and I won't forgive you," he said quietly. I thought I heard her arm crack a little as she flinched in pain.

"Li…kun…" said Meiling as he dropped her hand.

"C'mon Sakura…" he said as held my hand tightly, but not as harsh, and walked toward the exit doors.

"Li-kun," said Meiling. "Do you… do you like that girl more than me?"

Li stopped walking and I tried to pry my hands from him, but he held firmly to them.

"…"

"You like her… don't you? More than even me?" she said. Her eyes were full of sorrow; I almost felt sad for her, but then I remembered her slap. Bitch.

Li didn't look at her, and he was silent; I couldn't see his face.

"Li-kun…" said Meiling. "Why won't you answer—?"

"So what if I do?" he said suddenly.

I froze. I felt my stomach give a lurch inside me as I stared at him. What the heck! What's going on with him?

"Li… what are…?" I started.

"Sakura," he interrupted. "Let's go."

"Li… Li…!" I said as we walked to the car. He opened the passenger's seat, pushed me in, and walked to the other side and got in.

"Li… what was that all about?" I said. "Why did you say that—?"

"You're hurt," he said. "I'll treat your injuries at my house."

So much for listening to me…

**Syaoran's POV**

"Does it hurt?" I asked as we walked towards the house gate.

"Sort of…" said Kinomoto. Her lip was bleeding a bit.

Wow, girl fights are scarier than I thought.

Yelan stared at us as we walked in.

"Sakura-san… what's—?" she started looking at Kinomoto's face.

"Oh hey it's nothing Mom," I said quickly, forcefully laughing as I pushed Kinomoto closer to me so that my mom wouldn't see. "Well, bye we gotta go study!"

We walked quickly upstairs as my mother said, "Okay, study hard!"

I sighed as we got in my bedroom.

"Li…" started Kinomoto.

"Come here…" I said as I brought a first aid kit (hey it's my mom's okay?). I took out a bottle of alcohol and some cotton swabs and we sat on my bed.

"Ow…!" she said as I gingerly mopped with the alcohol soaked cotton on her bleeding lip and cut on her cheek (I think one of the girls scratched her).

"Oh shut up you baby…" I mimicked putting away the cotton. "Here…"

I brushed her hair out of the way and blew on her cut.

"Better?" I said as I placed away the bottle and stuff.

"Yes…" she said awkwardly.

"Hey doesn't this hurt?" I said touching her bruise on her other cheek. She flinched. "Um yeah," she said.

Whoa I didn't really notice that she had green eyes.

Oh CRAP!

I think I was TOO close to her face because she tried to move back, her face flushed.

"Sorry," I said withdrawing from her.

"It's okay," she said.

I had a feeling something like this happened to us before.

"Uh… so," she said, breaking the awkward silence. "Should I start reviewing?"

"Uh yeah… sure," I said and we sat next to the table. She went through her backpack and brought out some books. When she was done taking them out, she was silent for a moment, as though she was thinking about something.

Maybe it was something that happened before.

I did say that…

I liked Kinomoto better than Meiling.

"If you read through all of these it'll help you on your finals," she said finally which made me snap to her attention.

"All of these?" I said staring.

"They really help," she said.

I tried to remove the thought of boredom from studying when I just remembered something.

"Hey, you called me 'Syaoran'," I said.

"Oh," she said. "But I thought you said it was okay?"

"When did I say that?" I said.

"Remember? At the bus? When I was sick?" she said. "You said it was okay for me to call you 'Syaoran' if I wanted to."

What the…? I thought she was asleep when I said that.

"Oh," I said stupidly. "Oh yeah…"

She smiled at me.

"You can call me 'Sakura' if you want," she said. "It seemed like you had no trouble calling me that before."

"Uh that was…" I said. I paused. Why DID I say 'Sakura'? I must've been out of my mind…. yeah that must've been it.

"I'm happy that I can call you by your first name," she said. "Eh, Syaoran-kun?"

"Cool," I said getting less interested by the second.

"Call me 'Sakura'," she said. "It'll save your breath on the syllables from my last name."

"Sakura…" I said slowly.

"Syaoran-kun," she said.

"Don't add 'kun'," I said.

"Huh why?" she asked.

"It feels weird when you say it," I said truthfully. "Just… 'Syaoran'."

I just don't like "kun."

"Oh okay, Syaoran!" she said.

"O…kay…" I said slowly. I couldn't believe it turned out like this.

We reviewed the books, and I thought I was going to pass out from boredom.

"So… I guess this is our last lesson," she said quietly.

"Yeah," I said.

"Just read through the books, and practice the words that I circled," she said. "And I'm sure that you'll do fine."

She smiled at me. "I'm glad that I was your tutor," she said. "I'm proud of you."

"…"

Uh wow that was such a cheesy line. "Proud"? Of what? Me? Gay…

She got up with the books that I didn't need in her arms.

"I guess I gotta go," she said standing up. "See you later."

"Wait…" I blurted.

She turned around, looking at me. Oh crap did I say wait? I meant go. Er I think I meant go. Why did I say that?

"Ah… nothing," I said, turning my gaze from her.

"Okay," she said, her voice had a hint of disappointment. Then she turned and stopped again.

"Oh and by the way…" she said. "What did you mean… about what you said to Meiling?"

"What?" I said, looking up at her again.

"Like… when she asked if you liked me more than her," she said.

"Oh," I said. I did? Oh yeah I did. What I meant to say was…

What DID I mean? I'm getting fucking retarded these days. Ugh…

"I meant… that I really do like you more than Meiling," I said. My chest lurched. "Uh… and I… uh… well you know, you leave me alone sometimes but she never does… at least you respect my privacy a little."

My chest relaxed, but something inside me felt like it was going to ambush me; it was a sickening feeling. Was I missing something?

"I see…" she said.

"What did you think?" I said.

"Oh it's nothing… it's nothing," she said.

What did she mean? Did she mean that I…?

No way.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Since it was out last lesson, Yelan invited Sakura to eat with us and Sakura couldn't refuse since Yelan already called Sakura's brother about it for permission.

"Sakura-san," she said staring at Sakura's face again. "What happened to your face?"

"Oh uh…" she said as we quickly looked at each other and then back to our food. "I accidentally tripped and smashed my face against a pole."

"Oh dear," said Yelan. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine thank you," said Sakura smiling. I rolled my eyes as I looked away.

She just HAD to make it sound all weird…

"Oh yes, your brother told me that he is taking a very late shift tonight," said Yelan. "So you'll be by yourself at home?"

"Yes I guess," said Sakura.

Yelan frowned a bit. But after a brief pause she smiled again. "Then why don't you sleep over tonight?" she asked.

**To be continued…**

It's kind of obvious what Sakura and Syaoran's reactions will be eh? Anyway I hoped you enjoyed and please review! Thanks!


	11. Syaoran's Story

Hi everyone! This is my new CHAPTER 11! WOOT! For all those who have been waiting to see how Amamiya died, well... IT'S IN THIS CHAPTER! YAY!

**Chapter 11**

**Syaoran's Story**

**Syaoran's POV**

"For the twentieth time, I didn't plan this!" I said angrily as Sakura snorted. I was sitting on my bed as Sakura was taking her pillow from her backpack.

"Psh, yeah right!" she said coming over. "You probably asked your mom to make me sleep with you!"

I have to admit, I was a little disturbed after I heard her last sentence.

"Who the hell would even look at you?" I said finally. "Let alone sleep near you."

"Why you…" she started. The door knocked and my mother came in.

"Sakura-chan, Syaoran?" she said. "Are you getting ready to sleep?"

"Yes…" I said glumly.

She smiled at Sakura. "That's a cute set Sakura-chan," she added, looking at Sakura's pink pajamas. Sakura blushed.

I rolled my eyes. Who the hell likes pink? Green owns all.

"Oh Syaoran, I hope you're not uncomfortable, but can you share the bed?" Yelan asked.

"WHAT?" said Sakura and I in unison.

"I'm just kidding," said Yelan covering her ears. "But the guest room is being used for holding the imports from America. So…"

"You know what, I'll just sleep on my freaking couch," I said. Even if I didn't say anything, she would probably make me give up the bed anyway.

Sakura stared.

"Uh…" she started.

"Alright, goodnight!" said Yelan happily as she walked out of the room and turned off the lights in the hallway. The only lights on were the ones in my room.

"Ah… Syaoran…" started Sakura.

"What?" I said.

"Um… thanks," she said as she sat down on the bed next to me.

"Whatever," I said. "You owe me."

"What? Just for giving up the bed?" said Sakura. "You're so immature."

"Let's say scary stories," I said.

"NO!" she screamed suddenly. "I-I mean… well… I'm not in the mood…"

Who's the immature person now.

She looked at a picture on my bedside counter. "Oh?" she said. "Was this you when you were little?"

I looked at the picture and froze. It was me when I was ten with Amamiya and my other friend.

"Hey, don't touch things that aren't yours," I said as I snatched it.

"Aw, you looked so cute," she teased.

"Shut up," I said annoyed.

Her face looked a little more serious when she spoke her next sentence. "Was that Amamiya too?" she asked.

"Yeah…" I said placing the picture back on the counter.

"Hey, you didn't tell me what happened," she said. "About how Amamiya died…"

"Why do you care?" I said.

She glared at me, but I stared straight at her. I get glared a lot by teachers so they don't have an effect on me anymore.

"Can't you tell me?" said Sakura. "I'm really curious."

"No," I said as I began to get off the bed. "Now go to sleep—"

Then suddenly a pair of (I dunno why but strong!) arms wrapped around my neck from behind and started to choke me.

"Ack! Whad rth you thoing?" I exclaimed. (What are you doing?)

"How dare you disobey your tutor?" I heard her snap. "Tell me now!"

"Ex-thuthor!" I gasped, trying to break her grasp (Ex-tutor!). She quickly pulled me on the bed and placed her legs on top of my arms, pinning them on the bed so I wouldn't make her let go of me.

What the fuck? How the hell did she get so freaking strong all of a sudden?

"Leth-go!" I choked. (Let go!)

"Say you'll tell me your story and I'll let go!" she said.

"Okay!" I said.

"Okay what?" she said.

"Ith thell you!" I said. (I'll tell you!)

"Promise?" she said.

"YES!" I cried.

She finally let go of me (and my arms) and I sat on the bed, coughing.

"Good boy," she said.

"Bitch…" I muttered.

"Well you got beaten by a bitch," she said, grinning.

"…"

After I caught my breath, we sat down, facing each other. She held her pillow as if something scary was going to pop out.

"Ugh…" I sighed. "Okay… I'm not going to repeat myself alright?"

"What?" said Sakura looking at me innocently. Bitch, you're doing this on purpose.

"Okay no story," I said as I started to get off the bed.

"I'm kidding!" said Sakura as she grabbed my arms and gave me a big grin. "Please start."

I sighed and sat back down.

**Sakura's POV**

"Okay…" said Syaoran. "For the background info, I moved here, in Tokyo, when I was ten."

"From…?" I said.

"Hong Kong," he replied.

"Ooh," I said.

"So yeah," he said slowly. "We were moving because my dad was sick… so we thought a new place would help him get better. And when we just moved here, I met some of my mom's friends with one of them having a daughter. They lived there for quite a while… I don't remember. But anyways, her daughter was nice, pretty naïve, but nice. They were waiting for someone else, I guess."

"Eh…" I said.

"What?" he said, looking at me.

"Nothing…" I said. Geez, I hope you didn't tell her that... she was naïve…

"For a while I thought she was too much of a goody too shoes," he said. "She sort of annoyed me because she always tried to talk to me. I thought she was as annoying as she was oblivious."

I sweated. How the heck did he come to like her?

"A week after we moved, my mom received a call from the hospital about my father who just died," he said slowly. "The climate wasn't enough, and his heart failed him."

"Oh…" I said. "I'm sorry."

"That day…" said Syaoran. "I met another girl."

"_Hey… why are you crying?"_

"_My father… he…"  
_

"_Did he pass away?"_

"_Yes…"_

"_Here…"_

"_What's…?"_

"_Wipe your tears with this… it will help."  
_

"_Thank you…"_

"_Do you feel better?"  
_

"_A little."  
_

"_You can keep it for as long as you want."_

"_Thank you."_

"_Tee hee…"_

"That girl was different than Amamiya?" I said.

"Yeah, for the first she was good at observing people… their feelings…" he said. "She was a little quieter than Amamiya, but she was always cheerful. But anyways…"

He looked down with an odd expression on his face.

"It was weird though," he said. "About three months later, Amamiya… said she loved me."

"EH?" I said.

"I thought she was just saying that… because I thought we were too young to understand love…" he said rather slowly. "But she even gave me a teddy bear with a ribbon."

"_Syaoran… Syaoran… do you know when a teddy bear's birthday is?"_

"_No… when is it?"_

"_When you put a ribbon to it and give it a name… it becomes his birthday."_

"_Ah…"_

"_And… when you give it to someone you love… and they name the bear after you… eh nevermind."_

"_Huh?"_

"_Syaoran… can I give you a teddy bear?"_

"_Wh-what?"  
_

"_A teddy bear! Here's a ribbon too!"_

"_Thank… you."  
_

"_Give it a name!"_

"_Uh…"_

"_You wanna name it…?"_

"_Er… I don't want to give it a name…"  
_

"_Aw why not?"_

I stared at the bear; the ribbon was tied around its arm.

"I thought… she was just acting stupid for her age," he said. "But after a week later, she had to move to Osaka because someone in the family was sick."

"Osaka…" I said. Osaka… is that why Syaoran asked me before?

"I didn't say anything to her since then when she said she loved me," he continued. "But I was… confused and scared when I found out she was moving. On the day that she was moving, my mother locked me in my room."

"_Mother… where is she? Where did you take her?"_

"_She's going away. She has to… it's for the best…"_

"_What are you doing mother! What's wrong with you?"_

"_Syaoran… don't cry… please… I know it's hard but…"_

"_You don't know ANYTHING!"_

"_Syaoran… I'm so sorry…"_

"_I hate you Mother!"_

"_Syaoran!"_

"I ran away from home, in search for Amamiya. But they had already left their house," he said. "Then I took a shortcut and found them at an intersection. I was going to reach them but…"

"_Hahh… I'm almost… wha…"_

"_!"_

_HONK! BEEP! SCREECH!_

"_A… AMAMIYA!"_

"Their car crashed into a truck," he said. "Apparently, the truck driver was trying to get away from the cops for drunk driving."

I gasped.

"Amamiya was fatally wounded… but she managed to hold on until I came to her," he said. "Because… she saw me running to her when they were still driving."

"_Syaoran… I just had to see you again."_

"_No… don't talk… please… all this blood…" _

"I'm so sorry… you're even mad at me too."

"_What…?"  
_

"_I ran away, but… they found me as soon… as I left."_

"_Why?"  
_

"_I just wanted… you to know… that I finally realized… that love doesn't change. Even though… mine is unrequited."_

"_Amamiya…"_

"_I'm so sorry…"_

"_Don't worry… I'm not mad… I…"_

"_I'm glad! Don't… don't worry about me…! I'll be… okay…"  
_

"_No Amamiya! AMAMIYA!"_

"She died… right in front of me…" he said.

What…?

"My mom picked me up from the hospital," he continued. "I think I became sort of paralyzed from the shock. She refused to tell me what happened to the others. But I was sure… that they died…"

They… died…?

Is… that why…

He looked at me. "Hey, what's wrong?" he said a little startled.

I touched my face and was surprised that it was streaming with tears.

"Ah…!" I said.

"H-hey! Don't cry!" he said flabbergasted. "This didn't happen to you…"

I don't know what happened to me… but I couldn't control my body. This story… it was as if its mood was controlling my emotions.

"I'm… sorry…" I said, as my tears rushed down my face.

"It's okay…" he said. He gave me a tissue.

I stared at him.

I never knew…

…that this pain would exist…

…from this guy.

I slowly got up on my knees.

"Stop crying you baby," he said looking up at me in disgust. "It's not like…"

"...!"

I felt my arms wrap around his shoulders as I held him into a tight embrace. "It's… okay," I said softly. "You can... cry now…"

Syaoran didn't say anything.

"You were holding in pain for so long…" I said. "If I was in your situation… I would've cried everyday, even until now."

"Sakura…" he said. I felt him place his arms around my back and bury his face onto my shoulder.

I wonder if he was crying or not.

**Syaoran's POV**

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

"Ugh…" I groaned as I opened my eyes. Morning already? Damn it.

"Hm?" I said. I smelled something really…

I stared.

And I froze. Did I mention that I stared?

"Ah morning already…?" I heard Sakura mumble… right next to me.

"Uh," I said.

"Hm?" she said sleepily as she looked up… at my face. I saw, in horror, that my arms were around hers and we were both on the bed (yes we did have our clothes on). We stared into each other's eyes.

"…"

"…"

"EEEKKKKS!" she screeched.

"Whoa!" I said as I stumbled back and fell off the bed.

"Oh my god!" she said blushing.

"Augh… my head," I said rubbing my head, which was throbbing like crazy.

"Wh-what happened?" she said.

"How am I supposed to know?" I said.

"What happened? I just heard something…?" said Yelan as she came in. "Oh my!"

She smiled at us. "Don't tell me you guys…" she started.

"Nothing happened, mom," I said.

"Okay, whatever you say," she rolling her eyes.

"MOM!"

"Sakura-chan, you can use my room's bathroom to take a shower," she said to Sakura as she gave her a towel.

"Oh… okay," said Sakura. "Thank you."

"Breakfast is almost done, hurry up you two," said Yelan as she closed the door.

"Wow that was weird…" I said.

"Yeah…" she said. We both sighed.

"Might as well get ready for school," she said as she took her backpack and began to leave.

"Hey Sakura…" I said suddenly.

She already read my mind. We both sweated.

"Let's forget that ever happened," I said. She nodded.

Then door closed.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Hey you guys both came to class at the same time," said Rika.

"Oh, yeah…" said Sakura as she blushed a little bit.

"I heard that you slept over at Li's house Sakura-san," said Eriol.

"Ooh!" said Takashi. "How was it?"

"Eh?" said Sakura.

"Shut up guys," I said. "Nothing happened."

"Haha, that's what they all say," said Takashi. Eriol chuckled.

"…"

Daidouji smiled.

"Okay class," said the teacher. "As you all know, we have a big project to do. I'll pick your group members."

"Mihara, Yanagisawa, and Yamazaki."

"Ooh how exciting!" said Naoko. Chiharu nodded with her hands on Takashi's neck (he was grinning and whispering quietly about how the term "team" was created).

"Sasaki, Hiragizawa, and Ishimaru."

"Let's do our best!" said Eriol. Rika smiled.

"Aw I wanted to go with Kinomoto-san…" said Ishimaru as he winked at Sakura. Sakura blushed.

For some reason he was annoying me.

"Kinomoto, Daidouji, and Li."

What the fuck.

"Yay Sakura-chan!" said Daidouji. "We're together!"

"Yeah!" said Sakura.

"…"

After the teacher called out the other groups, everyone got an evaluation sheet.

"You all have received the explanations on how to do the collage," said the teacher. "It is due by the end of this week, understood?"

"Yes!" answered the class.

"Class dismissed," said the teacher as the bell rang.

"Hey Li, let's go to your house," said Daidouji.

"Why to my house?" I said.

"Well, my mother needs to take up the whole house for the toys," said Daidouji.

"My house is getting cleaned right now," said Sakura. "There was a weird bug problem there."

"You guys have lame excuses," I said. They both gave me giant grins.

**Sakura's POV**

"Ooh, I haven't been here in a long time," said Tomoyo.

"Eh? Tomoyo, you went to his house before?" I said surprised.

"Yup," said Tomoyo. "I've known him for some time. The only thing is that he's…"

"Hurry up little children," said Syaoran as he opened the gate.

"Coming…" I said dully.

We sat on the couch in Syaoran's room.

"Eh…" I sighed. I just remembered the scene when Syaoran and I… er slept in the same bed…

I turned to Tomoyo who was staring at something.

"Tomoyo-chan?"

"This bear…" she said as she took the bear that I saw last night.

"Oh…" I said.

"She gave this to him…" she said softly.

"Eh? How do you…?" I started. Wait. Could she have been the girl that Syaoran was talking about? The other girl who knew Amamiya? Come to think of it, that picture with Syaoran's friend didn't look like Tomoyo. Maybe Tomoyo changed her style when she got older. I can't tell... it was a black and white picture.

"I guess he didn't tie the ribbon yet," she said. She placed it back on top of the cushion.

"Tomoyo-chan… you knew… Amamiya?" I said.

"Yes," she said.

"Oh, I see…" I said.

"Sakura-chan, that day at the play when Li had to act kind to you," said Tomoyo. "That was the real Li… before Amamiya died. He has changed since her death."

Was this why he is like this now? That Amamiya…

He really loved her.

"But her name… that was what Li called her," she said.

"What…?" I said. "What do you—"

"What are you guys muttering about," said Li as he brought tea (his mother made him).

"Nothing," said Tomoyo. "Let's work on the project."

Syaoran…

Why change into this kind of person?

Was it because…

You wanted to hide your feelings?

"Sakura-chan, pass the glue please," said Tomoyo.

"R-right," I said as I handed her the glue.

"What a pain…" muttered Syaoran as he began to cut out magazine pages.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Ah thanks Syaoran," I said as he gave me back my backpack. He gave me a ride home (Tomoyo insisted).

"Are you tired?" said Syaoran. "You're eyes are all ugly and purple."

"Thanks for telling me the truth," I said sarcastically.

"You're welcome," he said grinning.

"I'm home!" I said as I opened the door.

"Welcome home!" said Yukito.

"Hey Yukito-san!" I said.

"Late again squirt," said Toya.

"Hey Toya," I said irritably.

"Toya…?" said Syaoran.

Toya looked at both of us and stared at Syaoran.

"You…" said Toya.

Syaoran stared right back.

"Huh?" I said. "What's…?"

Yukito was just as confused as I was.

"Hey… I'm… going to go," said Syaoran. "See you."

"Okay… bye," I said.

Yukito closed door closed behind us as Syaoran left.

"Toya, what was that all about?" I said.

"Sakura… that guy," said Toya sternly. "I want you to stay away from him from now on."

**To be continued…**

Ooh, does Toya hate Li? (It's so obvious) This one was a sad chapter but I hoped you enjoyed! Please review!


	12. Into the Maze

Hey everyone! Here is the long awaited Chapter 12! Sorry I didn't update sooner, but I was busy with school and stuff. Enjoy!

**I decided to delete and post this chapter again, since I found out some people couldn't get into this chapter (because it said like "File not Found" or something). I hope the upload worked and people can now read my chapter. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 12**

**Into the Maze**

**Syaoran's POV**

Toya…

Toya Kinomoto? Could it be…?

"Hey Li, what's wrong?" said Eriol as he sat down on the couch.

"Eh… nothing," I said.

"Are you thinking about Sakura-san?" said Eriol. I froze.

"Why do you always ask stupid stuff like that?" I asked, annoyed.

"Because when you get annoyed, it's true," he replied. "You were thinking about her, weren't you?"

"Not really," I said. "It's about her… brother."

Eriol raised his eyebrows.

"Wow I didn't know you crossed the other side," he said staring. "Girls are not good enough for you anymore?"

"Dude, shut the hell up," I said. "That's not it."

He grinned. "Let me ask you a question," he said.

"What is it?"

"Do you… like Sakura-san?"

"WHAT?"

"Chill out…"

"Wait, but what?" I said. "Why did you ask that?

"Uh well, it's sort of obvious," he said.

"How is it obvious?" I said. "And no, I don't like her. I—"

"Li… I would like to tell you some advice," he interrupted. "You should move on."

"What…?" I said.

"Are you an idiot?" said Eriol. "You need to get over Amamiya… seriously. She's dead, what more can you do?"

"She's dead… because of me," I said. "I..."

"That's why I'm telling you to get a move on," he said. "It's not fourth grade anymore Li. She's dead… we can't do anything about it."

"I know…" I said.

But… I can't let her go.

**Sakura's POV**

"_I want you to stay away from him from now on."_

What the heck was Toya's problem? Did he hate Syaoran that much?

Hmph, if it's because he's a guy, he should notice that he's a guy too, but with the qualities of a jerk.

"Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" said Tomoyo as she looked at my face.

"Oh… the tea is a bit too hot…" I mumbled as I placed the cup down on the table.

"Were you thinking about Li?" she said.

"Why do you say that?" I asked.

"Because whenever you are deep in thought it's always about Li," said Tomoyo. "You were thinking about him weren't you?"

"Well not really…" I said. "I was thinking about Toya…"

"He embarrassed you?" she asked.

"That's not it," I said laughing forcefully. "It's something else."

Tomoyo smiled. "Can I ask you a question?" she said. I nodded.

"Do you… like Li?"

"WHAT?"

"Aah, the tea!"

"S-sorry!"

I began to wipe the tea off my skirt.

"B-but w-what?" I said, my face flushed. "Why did you ask that?"

"Um, it looks sort of obvious," she said. I blinked.

"How is it obvious?" I said. "And of course I don't like him he's—"

"Sakura-chan… I think I should tell you something," she said. "You should open up."

"What…?" I said.

"You guys always hang out together," said Tomoyo. "And it's not because of the tutoring; when there are people around, you guys act like you never knew each other."

"There can't be anything between us," I said. "He's still with—"

"I don't think Li is with her anymore," said Tomoyo. "And I think you should at least try."

"I…" I said.

But… I don't think he'll comprehend. Wait. Try what?

Tomoyo's cell phone rang. She picked it up.

"Daidouji speaking," she said.

Her face hinted a bit of disappointment.

She hung up and said, "Ah I'm so sorry Sakura-chan, I have to help my mother with something."

"It's okay," I said. "I'll see you later."

She waved good-bye as the limousine came to pick her up and drove away.

_Ring Ring! Ring Ring!_

I jumped as my cell phone rang. I quickly picked it up and said, "Hello?"

"Sakura you picked up…" said a surprised voice that belonged to Syaoran.

"Yeah so?" I said.

"I thought that you were studying or something," he said.

"No, I was hanging out with Tomoyo-chan," I said. "Why would you say that?"

"Uh, because unlike you I have a life?" he answered.

Sigh. Same old bratty Syaoran…

"Um… do you need help on something…?" I asked.

There was a pause.

"Are you free right now?"

"Uh… I guess so," I said slowly. What is he trying to pull?

"I'm going to hang out with my friends," he said. "Wanna come? Your friends are coming too."

"Wait, what?" I said surprised. What the heck?

I heard some kind of impatient sigh. "I'm going to pick you up at your house at eight. You better be there, or I'm going to kill you."

"Wait—!" I started. He hung up.

What the hell? Now he's ordering me? JERK!

"Hmph," I said to myself. "I'm not going to go!"

And guess what?

I went to my house. Sigh.

"Sakura, are you alright? You're trembling a bit," said Yukito staring at me.

"Oh uh… ahahaha!" I said. "I'm okay!"

"Where are you going?" said Toya.

"Uh… I'm hanging out with S… with some friends," I said. I almost forgot… Toya told me not to be near Syaoran. I wonder why?

He stared at me, as though he knew I was lying. I held my breath.

"Don't be out late," he said finally. "I have work."

I breathed again.

"Okay," I said.

"Of course monsters like you always come late," he added. "Since you can't understand normal human speech."

"Why you—!" I started as I raised my fist.

_Ding dong!_

"I got it!" I said as I went to the door.

"Saved by the bell, eh Toya?" I heard Yukito say.

"Psh, she didn't have a chance," said Toya.

I opened the door and to my horror, it was Syaoran.

Damn it! I thought he was going to bring someone else! I should've expected that he would come here.

"Hey, not geeky clothes today," said Syaoran looking at me.

"Who is it?" said Toya. I heard footsteps coming to the hall. CRAP!

"Hide! Hurry!" I said as I waved my arms frantically in front of him.

"What are you doing?" said Syaoran.

"Just—!" I started, but I lost my balance.

"Yeek!" I cried as I heard Syaoran say, "Whoa!"

He caught me and we both fell down the steps.

"Sakura, what happened?" said Yukito as he came to the door. I quickly stood up.

"Uh, nothing!" I said forcefully laughing. "My friends came, so I'm going to go okay?"

"Hey that's…" started Yukito as he looked at Syaoran who was groaning.

Crap I forgot to hide him!

"Uh… uh…!" I said. Oh no…

"Hey did something happen?" I heard Toya say.

Yukito turned and said, "Nah, she just tripped."

Yukito….

"Really? What a klutz," Toya said.

Stupid Toya.

Yukito looked back at me and winked. "Have fun, Sakura," he said and closed the door.

PHEW!

I walked to Syaoran who was rubbing his head.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he said.

"Eh, it's a long story," I said. "Sorry for going crazy like that."

"You don't have to go," he said suddenly as he stood up.

"What? You just said—" I started.

"I know… but I changed my mind," he said.

"Huh…?" I said.

But before he could say anything I heard a familiar voice. "Hey Sakura-san," said Eriol as he approached us. "You look cute."

"Thanks," I said smiling and blushing at the same time.

"Hey what happened to you Syaoran?" said Eriol grinning. "You look like crap."

"…"

"Let's go guys," said Takashi who came as well. When I went to the car, I saw Naoko and Chiharu.

"Hey Sakura-chan!" said Naoko. "Tomoyo and Rika are going to meet us there!"

"Where?" I said.

"It's a surprise!" said Chiharu winking.

Oh boy.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I should have never agreed to come with them… I should have listened to Syaoran. Why?

BECAUSE WE WENT TO A FREAKING HAUNTED HOUSE!

"I can't believe this…!" I whispered, in near tears.

"Ooh I can't wait!" said Naoko, peering closer to the house.

Well it wasn't really haunted. It was one of those haunted maze thingers where people scare the crap out of you because they get paid to do it.

I saw Tomoyo and Rika waiting for us.

"Tomoyo-chan? I thought you were busy," I said as we came to them.

"Well actually, I finished helping my mother early," she said.

"Eh…" I said. "Why are we going there anyway?"

"Naoko-chan wanted to," said Rika. "She got free tickets for winning "best horror writer" in a contest."

"Congrats Naoko-chan," I said dully.

"Thanks, wow I'm so excited!" she said. "I heard this is the scariest maze of Japan!"

Nooo…

Everyone smiled except for me and Syaoran, who looked as though he didn't want to go.

"Let's go everyone!" said Naoko as she pointed confidently to the maze. "To the haunted house!"

Crap… I hate this! But I can't make Naoko sad; I mean she did win this and stuff…

"Agh…" I groaned softly.

"I told you not to go," said Syaoran softly.

"Eh?" I said.

"Alright everyone!" cried Naoko. "LET'S GO!"

**Syaoran's POV**

The line had a moderate amount of people. I still can't believe I got dragged into this place.

This is stupid.

I looked at Sakura who was obviously terrified. Argh, this is going to be a nuisance.

At least she didn't look like a nerd. She actually looked okay. This is my first time seeing her with a dress. Argh, what am I thinking!

"Right this way," said a worker as Yanagisawa handed him our tickets.

"Good luck guys!" said Sasaki.

"Ooh, this is going to be so much fun!" said Yanagisawa.

"I wonder what's in there?" said Daidouji.

"I hope they have special effects," said Eriol.

"Yamazaki, this looks creepy!" said Mihara.

"Don't worry Chiharu, I'll hold your hand," said Yamazaki.

Sakura said nothing. Neither did I.

We walked inside and the first thing we saw was some kind of bat statue thing. Sakura obviously screamed.

I guess the passages split at the middle, since we were given directions about where to go and stuff as a group. I saw Sakura trembling and closing her eyes, as though this was some kind of movie.

"Hey…" I said as I placed my hand on her shoulder. She automatically jumped on my touch.

"Y-yeah?" she said when she saw that it was me.

"I'll go with you," I said. "Don't be scared, it's fake."

"I-I know…" she said.

We all walked together some more (with Sakura squealing every second) and got to a huge room with split passages.

"Please be notified that visitors must have a partner only to travel through this section of the maze," announced a worker. "The maze splits into different sections."

"Oh no…" mumbled Sakura.

Eriol held hands with Daidouji. Yamazaki went with Mihara. Sasaki and Yanagisawa paired up as well.

That just leaves Sakura with…

"Hey Li, can you go with Sakura-san?" said Eriol.

…me.

Eriol and Daidouji went on the first passage. Mihara and Yamazaki went on the second, and Yanagisawa and Sasaki went on the third.

"Let's go," I said. Sakura suddenly clasped my arm and moved close to me. We walked to the fourth passage.

It's the same old thing for all "scary" mazes. Hired people come in weird make-up and costumes and try to scare you. Yada, yada…

I almost covered my ears from the last scream Sakura made when she saw a clown with a knife.

"I can't believe this…" I muttered as I saw the clown go to her and apologize.

"Hey dumbass, it's almost over," I said. She looked at me, and I was pretty shocked. She looked like she was going to faint. Her face was so white that I could've sworn that she was wearing some sort of mask, and she was trembling like crazy.

"You really… hate this," I said. She nodded.

**Sakura's POV**

I really hate this.

I really do…!

I really should've listened to Syaoran when I had the chance. Ugh… this place makes me so sick.

He must've sensed my queasiness when he sort of hugged me so that my face was nearly covered by his chest.

"Just walk, and if you're scared, don't look," he said looking ahead.

"O-okay…" I said, slightly blushing. Hey come on, he's basically hugging me.

Needless to say, I burrowed my face on him almost entirely throughout in the maze.

Then he walked a little slower; I guess that meant we were almost at the end. I wonder if everyone else finished before us. Syaoran and I were the only ones who went on this passage.

I peeked and saw a small light at the end of the hall. There was one more room and then… OH MY GOD, WE'RE ALMOST AT THE END! YAY!

Syaoran noticed as well. "Look, we're almost…" he started. Then he stopped.

"Eh?" I said, muffled from his chest (in case someone popped out). "What's wrong?"

"…"

I looked up and saw Syaoran, who was staring at something. Then I turned and saw…

…a group of bloody dolls (representing people) and a smashed car.

Oh no…

"S-Syaoran," I said. "Let's…"

"Ungh…" he gasped as he was staring at the scene in shock. He started to rub his head in pain.

"Syaoran," I said. "Let's go."

I grabbed his head and covered him with my shoulders. Then we quickly ran out of the room.

"Damn…it…" I heard him mutter.

We ran outside to see everyone else stare at us.

"I thought you were the one who didn't like scary stuff Sakura-chan," said Chiharu ("What?" said Naoko. "Why didn't you tell me!").

"Oh… uh…" I stuttered.

Syaoran slowly pushed away from me, with the look of disgust in his face. "Fuck," he said. "Damn… maze."

Tomoyo sensed something wrong as well.

"I think it's time we should all head home," she said quickly.

We all walked to the entrance (when we arrived there, the place officially closed since it was nearly 10 p.m.). No one felt very comfortable with the silence, so everyone started to talk about their experiences on the maze.

"Our maze was great!" said Naoko. "There were a lot of people that popped out at us! It was so fun!"

Tomoyo and Eriol smiled. "I liked it a lot," said Tomoyo.

"I liked all the designs they put in there," said Eriol.

"You guy were too fascinated by the stuff in there than being scared by them," sighed Rika.

"Chiharu didn't like it much," said Takashi. Chiharu rolled her eyes.

"That's because you were the one screaming Yamazaki!" she snapped.

"Hey, that bloody doll was pretty creepy if you ask me!" he retorted.

I looked at Syaoran, who still didn't look so good. He was sort of angry and sad at the same time.

"What happened in your maze," asked Tomoyo, ignoring Chiharu and Yamazaki arguing.

"Well… uh… I…" I said slowly. "I basically screamed at almost everything. And Syaoran wanted to go in this room… and I didn't want to so I… dragged him out."

"I see," said Tomoyo smiling. "No wonder; it looked like you really didn't want to go in the room."

"Ahaha yeah," I said scratching my head.

"Well… bye everyone!" said Chiharu as Yamazaki brought his car to drop her and Eriol off. Tomoyo (with her limousine) offered to drop off Rika and Naoko.

Pretty soon, were alone again after everyone else left.

"Hey, Syaoran," I said. "You okay?"

"I'm fine…" he said as he walked toward the parking lot. "C'mon."

"Okay…" I said dryly. Geez…

He looked like he was still pissed though. His face says it all.

"Hey," I said suddenly.

"What?" he said, a little irritated.

"You don't seem okay," I said. "Your face isn't showing 'fine.'"

"Better than your ugly one," he replied.

What the…

"What's your problem?" I said my tone with a pinch of anger. "I asked if you were okay and you're just snapping at me!"

"Look who's talking," he said. "I'm not the one with the loud voice around here."

"Syaoran… I know what you're feeling," I said (my voice calming) as I tried to touch his shoulder. "I know how much it hurts to—"

"Would you stop fucking saying that!" he shouted suddenly as he pushed my hand away. "You don't know how I feel!"

What the hell?

"But—" I started.

"Were you there when she died? Did you see all the blood!" he yelled. "Did you see her get hit by that truck and fly out of the car window?"

"No—"

"Did you see her mangled body!" he continued. "Did you see her die in your own arms?"

"…"

"You think you can help everyone, but you just can't!" he said. "You think you know what people feel but you don't! Get a fucking grip Sakura. YOU DON'T KNOW ME!"

Some sort of strong anger surged through me.

And then…

I slapped him on the face with all the strength I could gather.

He stared at the ground, stunned by my blow.

"Why don't you get a fucking grip?" I shrieked. "I never said that I knew everyone! I never said I knew how it felt to actually see someone die!"

He slowly looked back at me, with a red mark on his cheek and a shocked expression on his face.

"I know you lost someone, but you aren't the only one who lost someone you love!" I screamed. You think you are the only one who can get pissed off at people just because someone in your life is gone!"

He still continued staring.

"At least you had memories of her before she died!" I shrilled. "I can't even remember my parents! I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER WHAT THEY LOOKED LIKE!"

And before I knew it… there were tears rolling down my cheeks. I wiped them carelessly at the back of my sleeve.

"You know why you say that I don't know you?" I said. "It's because you push people away when they try to help you! Get a freaking grip Syaoran! IT'S YOUR FAULT PEOPLE DON'T KNOW YOU!"

I wiped my eyes again, turned, and ran to nowhere. I didn't care where it was, as long as it wasn't near Syaoran.

I don't know if he was running after me or not. I didn't hear anything behind me. Then I found myself a little far from the bus station. My pace died down to walking.

Stupid Syaoran…sniff…

Bastard!

I guess I'll just take the bus then…

"Hey pretty lady," said a deep, yet scratchy voice behind me. "Why are you alone?"

Crap…

**Syaoran's POV**

She slapped me…

She slapped me! She even cried too!

This isn't my fault; it was her fault for bringing it up!

Fuck…

Then why am I feeling so guilty…?

Sakura…

You…

ARGH!

I ran to where she ran off to, but she was nowhere in sight. Well I had to go after her; it'll be my fault because it was my responsibility to bring her home. Then again, I didn't care much.

Did she take the bus? I tried to call her but…

"_The phone's owner is not reachable. Please leave a message after—"_

"Damn," I said as I closed my phone. "The bus doesn't come in another five minutes…"

I ran to the bus stop, but I didn't see her.

"What the…" I muttered. "She's not…"

She's probably still pissed. Maybe she took the subway.

**Sakura's POV**

I learned that if a rapist or a kidnapper tried to talk to you, you would have to scream. Right? So I did.

I screamed once though, since it was so loud that they (as in _four_ guys) gagged me.

"Holy shit, her scream's like a stereo," said the shady guy.

"Yeah, just hurry up and fuck her," said another. "Take off her dress."

They began to loosen the laces at my back. I began to scream, even though I was gagged.

Crap, I'm not losing my virginity to some freaking shady guys!

I scratched as hard as I could on the guy's face who was on top of me; he staggered back in pain. Then I kicked him between the legs. He made some sort of soft groaning sound from his mouth, and fell down.

One down, three to go.

"Ooh, she's a tough cookie," said one guy who grabbed me from behind. He pinned my arms down.

NO!

"Calm down pretty lady," he said. "This will be over real fast; don't worry."

I'm going to get raped. I might even die.

Damn it, I shouldn't have run away…

"Hurry up and—" started one guy, but something made him turn and get punched in the face.

"Yo," said a voice.

I stared.

It was Syaoran. I couldn't believe it.

"Who the fuck are you?" said the guy who got punched. Right after that he got kicked in the face.

"Hey," said Syaoran to the other three guys. "Let her go, and I won't kick your ass."

At first he sounded like some kind of superhero until he said the "I won't kick your ass" part.

"Don't think you can beat all of us…" started another guy. Syaoran kicked him in the face as well.

"Fucking punk!" said another.

The three other guys slowly got up and three of them started fighting Syaoran. The other one grabbed onto me.

"S-Syaoran!" I choked through the gag. "Run away!"

"WHAT?" he said as he punched a guy's stomach. "I can't hear you!"

Syaoran, you're so stupid. Why did you come?

"Fuck," said the guy who was holding me. Syaoran already brought down two people. The guy behind me let me go and started to run towards him.

Syaoran easily toppled him to the ground. Then he grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him. The four guys slowly (very slowly) stood up and faced us.

"Sakura… run…" said Syaoran, slightly breathless.

"No… I-I can't!" I said. I can't just freaking leave him…!

The four guys charged at us.

"THEN JUST HIDE!" he shouted as he ran in to fight again, pushing me roughly by the side.

Crap! I ran behind a building corner and saw kicking and punching everywhere.

Then I glimpsed one guy who slowly walked towards Syaoran…

…with a knife.

Oh my god!

"SYAORAN LOOK OUT!" I shouted as I tried to run to him. Syaoran turned to the guy, but the guy successfully stabbed him in the stomach.

I screamed.

**To be continued…**

Ooh, wonder what'll happen next? Next time, folks!

Author's Note: I have to admit this chapter was one of my darkest, maybe as dark as Chapter 7, but nevertheless I wanted to bring out how Sakura was feeling as well (about the whole death of a loved one thing).

Thanks for reading everyone! Please review!


	13. I'm Sorry

WAGH! Sorry everyone for not updating such a long time. Finals week was killer, especially when I had four projects due on the same week, yeek! Please forgive me! I added a little more than usual so here's Chapter 13; ENJOY!

**Chapter 13**

**I'm Sorry**

**Syaoran's POV**

I don't think I remembered anything that happened after I got stabbed. I just remembered that it hurt like hell…

Oh yeah, and Sakura's annoying screams.

I opened my eyes slowly and saw my mother sit next to me. I couldn't read her expression. After a second I realized that I was in the hospital.

"Where's… Sakura?" I whispered. She paused as she stared at me.

"She went home… her brother picked her up," she answered finally. "You need to rest…"

"Is she okay?" I interrupted.

"Yes she's fine," she said promptly. "You, on the other hand, are not. The doctor advised plenty of rest."

"How long have I been…?"

"Just a day," she said.

Just… _just…_ a day?

"Mom," I said, breathing heavily. "I want you to leave…"

I felt chills down to my back as she stared at me. Those eyes…

My stomach gave a sharp spasm of pain.

"Now…" I said through clenched teeth.

"Ah…" she started. "Oh… alright…"

As she left the room, the pain collapsed and I sighed.

I covered most of my eyes from the light above me.

_SYAORAN!_

Hmm… I definitely remember Sakura screaming. And… that guy… I think I…

Why can't I remember?

**Sakura's POV**

"_Are you… are you okay?"_

"_Yes, yes I'm fine… but you…!"_

"_Good…"_

I remembered that he touched my cheek and then lost consciousness.

Syaoran… you idiot…

I quietly sighed as I stared at the beef on the kitchen table. My hands were a bit raw from the cutting, but I wasn't thinking about that at the moment.

"Sakura, you don't look so good," said Yukito in a worried expression. "Are you alright?"

"Uh… yeah," I said. "I'm… I'm fine."

Toya, in the other hand, wasn't. He was silently cutting up tofu and adding them in a pot for our evening meal. Even though he didn't say anything, I could tell he was totally mad.

But I couldn't take it. Oh man, this is a risk, but I have to at least try to talk to him…

"Toya…" I said. "I…"

"Why didn't you listen to me Sakura?" said Toya quietly. "I told you to get away from him."

Crap, he really is upset.

"I'm… I'm sorry," I said. "I didn't know—"

"How can you not know?" said Toya, his voice slowly rising.

I know he would be worried, but why is he so pissed? All this was my fault. And more importantly…

"Toya, I know he's a guy and all, but I don't have the slightest clue why you don't like him," I said. "And last night… it was my…"

"This is what happens when you don't listen to me Sakura," said Toya, his voice nearly close to a yell. "Look what happened! You got hurt because of him!"

"What are you talking about?" I snapped.

"H-Hey guys…" said Yukito. "Don't…"

"It's no use talking to her," said Toya.

That's it.

"For your information, I did try to get away from him!" I yelled. "But he helped me get away from a couple of guys and because of me, he got hurt!"

"That's just—"

"You always do this when I hang out with a guy!" I said. "Just because you don't like guys that hang around with me doesn't mean you can blame everything on them!"

"That's not true!" said Toya. "I just want you to get away from _him_!"

"Why?" I exclaimed.

"Because he's the one who…!" started Toya. But then he suddenly stopped and looked away. Yukito looked at both of us sadly.

"What's wrong with you Toya?" I said. "Right now, I don't even get you."

My heart was beating like crazy, as though I was scared that he might…

"I… it's none of your business," said Toya stubbornly. "You're not old enough to know."

Then my heart beat slower as my veins throbbed with hot anger. He never said that… he always told me everything that was on his mind. Why stop now? I… I…

I felt my tears creep out of my eyes, but I tried a huge effort to keep them in.

"I… hate you…" I said softly.

Toya stared. His mouth opened and closed as though he was about to say something, but no sound came out from it.

I brushed my eyes with my sleeve and ran to my room. I slammed the door shut behind me and toppled on the bed.

"Stupid… Sakura…" I muttered to myself as I buried my face in my pillow. "Why did you say that awful thing to Toya…?"

I grabbed my Kero doll and hugged it tightly to my chest.

Toya… I don't hate you…

I hate myself.

_Ring Ring! Ring Ring!_

Without looking at the screen, I picked up.

"Hello…" I said dully.

"Sakura."

I gasped.

"S-Syaoran…?"

Why is he calling now? He should be asleep! I said that aloud to him.

"I'm fine…" said Syaoran slowly.

"No… you should be—" I started.

"Sakura," he said. "Are… are you okay?"

"Y-yeah…" I said. "I'm…"

"I'm sorry."

My voice got cut off and there was a brief silence.

"Sakura?" he asked. I found my voice again.

"W-why are you… apologizing?" I said.

"This was my entire fault…" he said. "What else, you dork?"

"You're…?"

"I didn't mean to make you so angry… I just didn't like that _thing_ and I snapped at you…" he said.

"I…" I croaked. Why… why is he saying sorry? I just…

"_It… it's not your fault,"_ I thought as I felt something wet trickle down my cheek. I couldn't keep them in anymore…

"I'll see you later," said Syaoran finally. "You're tired aren't you?"

"No wait Syaoran…!" I started.

_Click_. He hung up.

I stared at my phone. And then I firmly gripped it.

I'm sorry Toya… I'm so sorry. But just this once… this last time…

I slowly crept for the door in the hall to the outside. Until…

"Sakura?" said a voice.

Oh no…

I turned and saw Yukito looking at me with a mixture of confusion and concern. He had his coat and book bag… I guess he was leaving.

"Where are you going? It's getting late," he said. I looked at my watch and saw that it was eleven in the evening (Toya probably went to bed early).

"I…I need to see him," I whispered. "I want to see if he's okay."

"Sakura…" he started.

"Please Yukito… please!" I said. "This was my fault and…"

He sadly frowned.

"Sakura," he said. "I…"

Then his frown slowly turned to a smile. But it was still a sad one.

"Okay," he said. "I'll take you to the hospital."

A warm relief spread through me.

"Thank you!" I said.

He sighed. "I feel like I'm betraying your brother," he said. "I wonder…"

"Yukito, I'm sorry I'm making you do this," I said.

Yukito smiled again. "Don't worry, it's because you're like my little sister."

"But Toya is like your brother…" I said.

"Yeah, but still, bros don't always have to get along," he said.

"Yukito… do you know why Toya doesn't like Syaoran?" I asked. He looked a little more serious than before.

"Yu…?" I started

"I know you want to know… but for this, I have to be on Toya's side," he said. "You understand don't you?"

I nodded slowly. "Yeah…" I said. "Thanks."

**Syaoran's POV**

I stood up and stared at my stomach. Then I slowly unbuttoned my shirt and looked at the heavy bandages wrapped around my stomach and chest.

_SYAORAN!_

I remember… that…

Sakura was screaming… and that guy stabbed me… and then I punched him and he passed out too…

And then…?

_Creak…_

I glimpsed at the door. I thought I heard something.

I imagined Sakura standing there, scared, tear stained, and…

Wait a minute…

I blinked. Then I saw Sakura run to me and… hug me!

UWAH! IT WASN'T MY IMAGINATION!

"S-Sakura what are you—?" I exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, but I had to see if you were okay!" she said. Her eyes were full of tears.

"Y-Yeah but… um…" I said. I could've sword that my rib cracked when she slammed into me.

"Ow…"

She stared at my bandaged body and gasped.

"Ah, I'm sorry!" she said. "It hurts doesn't it?"

I looked at her face. It was so messed up. No seriously, like REALLY messed up.

But I didn't care.

I chuckled. "You're crying like a baby…" I said as I wiped her tears away. She gave me a watery smile.

"Idiot," I said as my arms circled around her small body. She gave a small gasp as I hugged her tightly. The automatic door slowly closed in front of us.

**Sakura's POV**

I was lucky that I had a cool, "brother" like Yukito. He dropped me off and said that he would pick me up later.

I think I kind of went ballistic when I ran to Syaoran. He sort of freaked when he saw me. But then he hugged me and it felt so nice and warm…

And then I heard it.

"Sakura…" he said quietly. "Sleep with me."

WAH?

"Wh-wh-what?" I stammered blushing furiously. "Wh…"

He looked at me with a serious expression.

"B-b-b-but…!" I said.

I can't lose my_ virginity_! I mean, I know I made him get hurt, but that's a big thing to…!

He grabbed my shoulders and fell on top of me as we went on a bed, next to his bed.

OH MY GOD! I…!

"W-w-wait…!" I said. "I…"

He grunted in pain from his wound as he got up and reached for his shirt.

KYAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

"Sakura what's wrong?" he said. I slowly opened my eyes, but continued to cover my chest with my arms.

He had buttoned up his shirt and went on his own bed. Then he tossed me an extra pillow.

Eh?

"S-Syaoran…" I said.

"Hm?" he said as he looked over his bed to me.

My face was still hot; it was so hot that it made my tears evaporate. So this was what he meant…

I thought…

He smiled. "What?" he said.

"N-nothing," I said.

"Okay," he said. He went back on his bed. Five seconds later he turned and looked at me again.

"What?" I said.

"You thought I meant sex didn't you?" he said grinning evilly.

I smacked him with my pillow and heard his "Ow!"

"You…!" I started blushing again.

"Haha, but I was RIGHT!" he said. He went back on his bed, waved his arm over me, and said, "Good night, Ms. Perv!"

I couldn't believe this. How immature was I?

It's just sleeping together… not sex; if it was he would've said it. STUPID SAKURA!

But even though it's like this… I'm still nervous…

I fell asleep before I planned what to do.

When I woke up, I saw light from the curtains. I slowly blinked and gasped.

But that wasn't the only thing that worried me. I turned to see Syaoran in bed with me with one of his arms around mine.

Because of that I shrieked.

"Whazzah?" said Syaoran as he suddenly got up, but grunted as he held his stomach.

"You-you…!" I said.

"Oh it's just you," he said yawning. "I never have a good morning when it's with you."

"What are you doing?" I said scrambling for my cell phone.

"Why are you surprised," he said. "You were the one who wanted to have sex."

"No I didn't!" I said. "I—"

"You were freezing," he interrupted. "You even said it yourself in your sleep. Well actually, more like screaming. You talk in your sleep don't you?"

"I…" I said.

"Whatever, I bet you liked it," said Syaoran.

I punched him in the face.

The door knocked.

We both cussed as he started to help me hide. Then the door opened and…

It was Tomoyo.

"Oh…!" she said, quite delighted that I was here. "I guess you came here early Sakura-chan!"

"Uh-well-I-guess-you-can-say-that," I said quickly. Syaoran looked embarrassed as well.

Tomoyo smiled at me. "Sakura-chan, I know you stayed over," she said. "Tsukishiro-san told me."

"EH?" we both said at the same time as she giggled.

"Toya…!" I said suddenly remembering.

"I called your brother and told him you went to sleep over at my house and for today as well," she said. "Don't worry."

But why didn't Yukito call me…?

A nurse came in the room. "Li-san, please rest, you need a full recovery," she said as she began to get new pillows and switch them with the ones on his bed.

"Uh okay…" he said and he turned to me.

"Sakura-chan, let's go out and have some tea," said Tomoyo. "We'll leave you alone to sleep Li."

He nodded and looked at me. "See you, Sakura," he said.

I felt myself go a bit red. _Gah, stop blushing!_

"S-see you," I said as I quickly turned and went out of the door.

Tomoyo stayed to ask him about something, and soon went out with me.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Tomoyo-chan, you knew what happened with…?" I started.

"Well, how Tsukishiro-san put it," she said. "It didn't sound so good."

I sighed. The maid laid out a teapot and two cups with a tray of biscuits. We were sitting at Tomoyo's HUGE backyard (more like those places that look like the gardens from _The Secret Garden._ ).

"Don't worry Sakura-chan…" she said. "I think it's good to leave your brother alone for a while."

"Yeah, thanks Tomoyo-chan," I said. She nodded.

"By the way, what did you and Syaoran do last night?" she asked.

"Uh…" I said staring at my cup of tea. "Well…"

"Hey Sakura-chan, you're face is a little… uh…" she said staring.

"Puffy?" I said dully. She nodded.

"Did you cry?" she asked. Then gasping, "Did _he_ make you cry?"

"No, well yeah sort of— but—!" I added quickly as her face swelled up. "It was because of me—so I sort of felt really…"

I couldn't finish the sentence but she understood.

"So Sakura-chan…" she said. "I also heard what happened that night at the maze. Are you both okay?"

"Yeah…" I replied. "I'm alright."

"And… you like him don't you?" she asked.

"Yeah…" I said without thinking. "Wait, WHAT?"

She sort of sighed and giggled at the same time.

"Well, actually I'm sort of surprised myself," she said, interestingly staring at a biscuit. "He sounded like… hmm…"

"Surprised about what…?" I said nervously.

"Him," she said. "Li… or in your case, _Syaoran_."

"In my case?" I said.

"He's a lot… how should I put it… _warmer_ to you now?" she said. "He didn't sound really aggressive like last time."

"Well, that's just him when he's with a few people," I said taking a bite out of a biscuit. "I mean… at school, he's just his usual snobby, idiotic self."

"You seem to know a lot about him now," she said. I stared at her. She didn't send me any sort of weird expression. She was just… smiling.

"Remember when you saw him near the cherry blossom tree?" she asked. "I wonder why he hangs out there…"

"He just said he hung around there a lot when he was little," I said as I sipped my tea.

Tomoyo was the one who stared this time.

"He never told anyone…" she said. "Not even Meiling."

Something didn't feel right. But I decided to shrug it off.

"Oh come on, Tomoyo-chan," I said. "It's nothing much… I asked him anyway."

"You think Meiling never asked him?" she said. "She asked him constantly until this year because he refused to tell her."

"So? He probably forgot that he wasn't supposed to tell anyone," I said.

Tomoyo picked up her spoon and dreamily stared at her tea as she stirred it.

"This is going to be very exciting…" she murmured.

"Eh?" I said. She set down her spoon and held my hand.

"Nothing Sakura-chan," she said. "Now, let's go to my house! I want you to try something on for me!"

"Eh… okay," I said. "As long as it doesn't have those frills from that play…"

**Syaoran's POV**

_Syaoran… Syaoran…!_

_Huh, who are you?_

_Remember me? It's me! It's…_

Her voice drowned out and I saw nothing more.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw the dim light of the room. It was night again…

I sighed as I rubbed my forehead. My stomach didn't hurt so badly anymore…

Eh, but something bothered me. It was what Daidouji said to me.

"_Li… you like her don't you?"_

Hmph, give me a break. Never in my life will I like a girl like Sakura.

And even if I did…

We can't be together anyway.

"Li-san, your mother called," said the nurse. "She asks when—"

"Tell her I'm sleeping," I said as I turned away from her.

"Oh, okay…" she said. She slowly bowed and left the room.

I looked at my cell phone and saw ten messages from Meiling and one from Tomoyo.

"Huh… Daidouji?" I muttered as I pressed on it to read.

"_Hello Li. How is your wound? Are you doing well? I was wondering if you are free tomorrow. I know it sounds kind of weird, but I need you to do me a favor. Please reply back, whether you are free or not. Thank you._

_Daidouji Tomoyo_

_P.S. I think Sakura texted you too."_

"Heh," I said as I looked down the list. And sure enough I saw Sakura's message too.

"_Hey Syaoran! You okay? I hope you get better soon!"_

Then I got a call and picked up without thinking.

"Hey Sa—" I started.

I stopped. It was Meiling…

"Li-kun, I heard what happened!" she said. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah Meiling… I'm fine…" I said.

"Let's go out tomorrow," she said. "I'm going to take you to a restaurant and treat you!"

I paused.

_I need you to do me a favor._

_I hope you get better soon!_

"I can't," I said. "I have errands to do."

"Eh? Oh… I see…" she said. "Is it… because of Kinomoto?"

"No," I said shortly.

"…"

"Listen Meiling, I need to sleep," I said. "Doctor's orders. Night."

I hung up the cell phone and opened it again to reply to Daidouji.

_Sure Daidouji. I don't have anything to do._

And to Sakura…

_Idiot! Of course I'm going to get better!_

I closed my eyes and then slowly opened them again. I wonder what Daidouji is planning…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"What…?" I said.

"The park! We're going to have a picnic!" said Daidouji.

"And you need my help because…?" I said.

"I wanted you to come!" she said. "I never said I wanted help."

"Who's going?" I said sighing.

"You, me, and Sakura-chan!" she said.

"You are one weird…" I started.

"Eh? Tomoyo-chan, what's wrong?" said Sakura as she appeared. We both stared at each other. "What's he doing here?" she said finally.

I kept staring at what she was wearing.

"Wh-what?" she said to me.

"You look…" I started. My voice drifted off. I couldn't find the right words.

"Shut up!" she said.

"I didn't say anything!" I said.

"Yeah, but I knew what you were going to say!"

"Idiot, it wasn't going to be negative if you were wondering!"

"R-really?" she said, her voice faltering. She cleared her throat as she said, "I-I mean… well, who cares!"

"Oh… I thought it would be nice for the three of us to spend some time together!" said Tomoyo hastily as she looked at both of us.

What the…

"Eh?" said Sakura in disbelief. "Wh-what…?"

"Let's go guys!" said Tomoyo as she grabbed our arms. "I already have the food!"

"Wah!" said Sakura.

"Hey, wait, I'm not completely healed yet!" I said as I painfully held my stomach.

"Sorry Li!"

What was that word? What I thought Sakura looked like?

Hmm…

**Sakura's POV**

P-Picnic?

With Syaoran?!

I dunno why but it's making me so nervous. It's weird!

And I bet he thought the dress was weird… even though he said it wasn't a negative comment. Anything negative is positive to him!

Stupid Syaoran, like he knows what looks good. I thought the dress Tomoyo picked out for me was cute…

I saw her hand me a sandwich and smile.

"Here you go, Sakura-chan, you must be hungry," she said.

"Yes…" I said as I took the sandwich.

"You too Li," she said. Li slowly took it. "Yeah I guess…" he said. He kept looking at me.

"Would you quit staring at me?" I said, flustered.

"What makes you think I was looking at you?" he said. I felt myself nearly glare at him.

I think my anger calmed down my nervousness.

"Hey Sakura-chan, Li," Tomoyo said. "Would you both get some water? There's a vending machine near the parking lot."

"Why didn't you ask us before?" said Syaoran.

"I'm sorry, I thought I packed it…" said Tomoyo sadly.

"Hey Syaoran, stop being such a jerk!" I said ("What the—?" exclaimed Syaoran). "We'll get you water, Tomoyo-chan; you can finish preparing the food."

"Hmph," said Syaoran as I grabbed his arm.

"Let's go!" I said as I pulled him toward the parking lot.

"Thanks guys!" said Tomoyo as she waved. I waved back and smiled at her as Syaoran just waved back without looking.

We walked to the vending machine and I put some money in...

"O…kay…" I said as I looked through the menu. "Where's the water…"

"Here…" he said as he pointed to a button that had a water brand.

"Oh, okay—!" I said as I reached for the button. His hand touched mine as we both pressed it.

After half a second, we both withdrew quickly. I blushed and he looked away.

"Sorry…" he said.

"I-It's okay…" I said.

There was a slight pause as I heard the water bottle come down.

"Hey you uh—get the bottles—" he said finally. "I'll put in the money and press the button."

"O-okay…" I said as I reached down for the bottles and he started to put money in.

"Hey Sakura…" he said finally.

"Hmm?" I said, trying hard to concentrate on the ground.

"When I saw you earlier…" he said. He hesitated. I looked up at him, but he wasn't looking at me. It looked like he was trying to concentrate on the buttons.

"I thought…" he said finally. "You looked cute."

My heart skipped a beat.

D-did he just say I looked cute? HE DID! GASP!

"O-oh… r-really…?" I said. He stood up and looked into my eyes.

"Yeah…" he said. I think if he stared any longer…

But he suddenly took the bottles from my hand as he said, "They're cold, aren't they? Let me take them."

"O-Oh…" I said.

"Let's go, Sakura," he said and he started to walk toward where Tomoyo was. I slowly followed him as I stared.

"_He's a lot… how should I put it… warmer to you now?"_

Tomoyo-chan…

He doesn't like me… does he?

**To be continued…**

Yay Chapter 13 COMPLETE! Hope you enjoyed and review! Have a great summer everyone! Er, uh don't worry I'll update again before school starts, I'm just saying "Have a great summer" because yeah. Please read my newest story, "My Little Tenshi!"


	14. A Small Doubt

HEY EVERYONE! Remember when I said I'll update another chapter before the start of the school year? WELL HERE IT IS! WHOO-HOO! ENJOY!

**Chapter 14**

**A Small Doubt**

**Sakura's POV**

"Our school is going to host a café festival," said the teacher he wrote it in the board. "It's going to be held seven days from today. Invite your friends, family, or anyone interested."

The class murmured amongst themselves as they handed the fliers to each other.

"Since the school year is ending, let's do our best everyone!" he said.

"Hai!" chorused the class as the bell rang. The students started to walk out of the class.

"This school has a lot of events," I said, amazed.

"Yeah, it brings up the school spirit," said Rika as she placed a book in her bag.

"I see…" I said as I faced Syaoran. "Hey, Syaoran, are you going?"

"I dunno," he said looking at me as Rika and Naoko stared. "Probably not."

"Why do you always say, "No" in everything…?" I sighed.

"Because I don't want to go," he replied. "People just make me."

"Li-kun let's go to the festival!" I heard Meiling say.

"Like her," he added dully.

"Oh," I said, though I was not surprised. Syaoran left early saying that he needed to smoke.

"Syaoran quit smoking…!" I said. "It's gonna kill you, you know. I hate smokers…"

"Yeah yeah…" said Syaoran as he walked out.

I wonder if Syaoran is really going to the festival…

Freak, it's not like I care!

"Did you make up with your brother yet?" said Tomoyo as she, Naoko, Chiharu, Rika, and I walked out of the class.

"Eh, not yet," I said.

"Hey, guys," said Rika. "I, uh… need to talk to Terada-sensei about something. You guys go on ahead without me."

"Oh… okay," said Naoko. "Come on guys."

Rika waved at us and headed to Terada-sensei's classroom.

"I wonder what she wanted to know," I said.

Tomoyo smiled. "It's probably a personal thing," she said.

"Eh? Personal?" I said curiously.

"Let's go," she said, as she took my hand.

"O…okay," I said.

"So…" said Naoko. "Are you going to the festival?"

"Yeah, it sounds fun," said Chiharu as Tomoyo nodded. The all looked at me.

"Sakura-chan?" they said at once.

"Oh y-yeah… I'm going," I said.

"Oh I spoke to Terada-sensei about the costumes," said Tomoyo smiling. "I'm going to be in charge of them."

"Ooh, Tomoyo-chan," said Chiharu. "That's a big responsibility."

"Yeah, but it's going to be so fun!" said Tomoyo. "Oh ho ho ho!"

I wonder what Tomoyo's gonna plan now…

**Syaoran's POV**

I had a feeling I shouldn't have told Sakura she looked "cute." How stupid of me. Eh, whatever.

I stared at my cigarette pack as I was sitting against the classroom wall.

Man I haven't smoked in a while. It's probably because all of these weird events that happened this past week.

"_Syaoran, quit smoking…!"_

Hmph, why should I listen to you?!

I slowly took a cigarette and lit it.

"Feh, café my ass," I muttered as I placed it to my lips.

"I-I'm sorry Yoshiyuki, I just had to see you," said a voice.

"What the…" I muttered as I opened the classroom window. I stared blankly and tried my best to keep myself from being exposed.

It was that Sasaki girl (one of Sakura's friends) and Terada. What the hell?

"It's alright Rika," said Terada. "I wanted to see you too."

"You're going to be really busy this week, aren't you?" said Sasaki. "I-I guess I won't be able to see you much…"

I saw Terada give a sad smile.

"I'm sorry Rika," he said. "You… you must be very lonely."

Sasaki smiled, yet I saw something wet on her face. Was she crying?

"I-I'm not lonely!" she said. "And—it's your job after all…!"

I stared as I saw Terada hug her. And then... kiss her.

Hmm… so I guess Sasaki has the hots for a teacher. No wonder she acts so… quiet in front of him.

He left the room as she wiped her eyes. I tried to walk back, but… the cigarette burned my hand.

"Ah!" I gasped as I threw it on the ground.

Sasaki gasped. "Wh-who's there?!" she said. She gasped again when she saw me.

"L-Li?!" she exclaimed.

"Oh—ah—sorry for startling you," I said awkwardly as I stepped back. "I'll just—"

"You saw everything didn't you…?" she asked quietly. I looked at her frightful face. I wonder…

"Please don't tell anyone!" she cried. "I beg you! I'll do anything!"

"What? That you're in love with a teacher?" I said.

She looked nearly tearful.

"Don't worry… I won't," I said. "Just be careful."

She smiled at me. "Thank you!" she said as she bowed. Then she ran off.

I wonder if Sakura knew. What the… _why _am I thinking about _her_ now?

**Sakura's POV**

I slowly walked into the house and to the kitchen. Toya was there, grabbing a soda. When he looked at me, he sadly turned away and quickly went up to his room.

Oh… he's still mad at me…

"Konichiwa, Sakura-chan," said a voice. I spun around and saw Yukito smile at me.

"Yukito… I…" I started.

"He's not mad… if you were wondering," he replied. "It's more… of the opposite."

"Eh…?" I said.

"But you know Toya," he continued. "He's the kind of guy who won't express his emotions verbally… but when the time is right, you can talk to him."

"I know…" I said.

"I heard you guys have a café festival right?" he said. "Can I come?"

"Sure…! You're invited!" I said.

"And Toya…?" he said.

"Yes…!" I said.

"I bet he'll be glad to hear that from you," he said smiling again. I smiled at him.

"Okay, Yukito."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Gwah… I'm late!" I gasped as I ran to the school gate as the morning bell rang.

I saw Tomoyo wave to me at the end of the hall. Coast clear, phew.

"Sakura-chan, what happened?" said Tomoyo.

"I couldn't—find—my shoes—" I gasped.

"Oy, Sakura," I heard Syaoran say. I turned and just managed to catch a cold bottle of water.

"Good morning, slowpoke," he said as he sat down on his desk.

"Th-thanks…" I said staring. Tomoyo beamed.

"Alright class, get seated…" said Terada as he stood up from his desk. "Let's discuss the roles of the café…"

I stared at the desk and ground. There were a lot of papers scattered on the ground and it looked as though Terada swept them to the corner of the class.

I wonder what happened. Was he cleaning?

Rika quietly sighed as she stared at the birdcage (it was her turn to take care of Sai, the class pet, which was a dove).

"Rika-chan, what's wrong?" I asked. "You don't usually look so down…"

"Oh… it's nothing," she replied smiling faintly.

"Eh? But—" I started.

"Hey Sakura, leave her alone," said Syaoran suddenly. "She said she's okay."

"Oh… okay…" I said slowly. Since when did Syaoran say things like that…? I didn't want her to get hurt… I only wanted to know if she was okay.

Syaoran…

Argh, why am I thinking about him?!

"Everyone ready?" said Terada. "The festival is only days away!"

"Yes!" said the class.

"Alright everyone, let's do our best!"

**Syaoran's POV**

"Li-kun, let's go out to eat!" said Meiling.

"No… leave me alone," I said.

"Why not?!" she said.

"Because I'm—!" I started.

There was a scream in the locker room. What the hell was that? Was that a scream? Sakura…!

I rushed to the locker room (with Meiling trailing behind) and saw Sakura, Sasaki, and Daidouji stare at something that was in Sasaki's locker.

Sasaki was in tears as she held something in her hands. I looked at the contents of her locker; there was blood and… feathers everywhere. The dead bird was in Sasaki's hands.

"S-Sai-chan…" she sobbed. "I-I… p-p-put her in th-the l-locker… f-for a…a minute… a-and…"

She couldn't speak anymore as she bent down and cried.

I looked at the back of the locker and stared.

In kanji with the blood as ink, said…

_I know your secret._

"Rika-chan… it's going to be okay…!" said Sakura as she hugged Sasaki tightly. I looked at her and she was in tears too. I didn't know why but somehow I didn't feel so good when I saw Sakura crying…

"We had to help Terada-sensei with the book order," Daidouji explained to me. "So she put the cage in her locker for a bit and when we came back to get it, it was like this."

"Someone killed the bird…" I said slowly.

"Yes," said Daidouji sadly. "No one was here to see it…"

"Why would someone do this?!" said Sakura shrilly.

Could it be? Someone's trying to shake Sasaki… someone who probably saw her and Terada too…

"Hey Sasaki… let's go bury Sai," I said suddenly as I grabbed her hand.

"L-Li-kun?!" said Meiling. "What about—?"

"Shut up Meiling," I said. "Sasaki, come." We both ran to the outside sinks.

"No one saw who did this?" I said quietly. Sasaki shook her head as she began to wash her hands and the bird's body. Its grotesque body looked like someone had tried to hack it into pieces.

"Someone's trying to blackmail you," I said finally.

"L-Li… what do I do?" she whispered.

"I don't know," I replied. "But… someone heard you other than me when you were with Terada."

"O-Oh no…!" she gasped. "I…"

"What about Terada," I said. "Did anything happen to him?"

"W-well, his office was a mess this morning… and he had to get a new desk because there was ink written all over it…" she said. "And he got a lot of hate mails…"

Hmm… the person got Terada as well. It can't be a group of people… otherwise the whole school would know by now. It's just one person…

"Does anyone you know, know about this except for me?" I said. She shook her head.

Perfect.

"Okay Sasaki," I said as I placed my hands on her shoulders to calm her down. "I have a plan. But you have to trust me on this, and tell _no one_. Okay?"

She nodded. "A-Alright…" she said.

**Sakura's POV**

I hope Rika is alright. Sai's death all came to a shock for us, but I'm sure Rika was the one who was affected the most (she was the one who took care of it longer than all of us had).

But what was up with Syaoran?

Tomoyo said the same thing.

"Eh…?" I said as I licked my spoon full of ice cream. Tomoyo and I were spending the afternoon at an ice cream shop after school.

"He seemed really concerned," said Tomoyo. "Maybe… something's going on…"

"Maybe he likes her," I said shrugging. "You never know. Rika-chan is pretty."

Tomoyo looked down at her ice cream bowl. "No… it's not that," she murmured.

"Huh?" I said.

She looked up at me. "Nothing…" she said smiling. "Finish your ice cream Sakura-chan, it's melting…!"

"R-Right…!" I said as we both began to eat our ice creams.

"Gah, brain FREEZE…!" I cried as I held my head. Tomoyo giggled.

Hmm… Syaoran…

I dunno about Tomoyo, but I'm sure it's probably nothing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Uwah, what a day," I said as I walked down the sidewalk towards the direction of my house.

I think Toya's taking a late shift today. I wonder… if he's still mad at me.

I saw a small candy shop along the way. "Oh… I'm going to buy Rika some candy to cheer her up for tomorrow," I muttered to myself as I went in.

I stared at the assortments on the shelves. "Oh…! This is good," I said as I picked out a chocolate teddy bear.

Someone roughly bumped into me. "Gwah!" I said as I dropped the bear.

"Sakura-san!" said a familiar voice. I turned and saw Kazuma who quickly grabbed the bear before it fell to the floor.

"K-Kazuma-kun!" I said.

He smiled at me. "Looking for candy?" he said. "I was candy shopping too."

"Oh… y-yeah," I said, blushing a bit. Hmm… something about Kazuma didn't look really…

"Oh, Kazuma-kun, are you alright?" I said staring. Kazume grinned at me.

"Don't worry about me," he said. "I'm alright; I'm just getting a little sickly from the heat."

"Oh… I hope you feel better," I said. Kazume looked back to the door and quickly shoved the bear into my arms.

"I'm sorry Sakura-san, but I have to go," he said smiling sadly. "I'm in a hurry."

"Oh alright, bye," I said. He dashed out of the door. I turned around and purchased the bear chocolate (and put it in a bag) and then heard the door open.

"Sakura-chan?" said another voice. I turned and stared.

It was Rika and Syaoran… together.

"R-Rika-chan? Syaoran?" I said. "What are you…?"

"Oh… she wasn't feeling so good so we went here to get some candy," said Syaoran.

"I… I see," I said. My stomach felt queasy for some strange reason. I looked at Rika who looked down… she was still shaken about the bird.

But why would Syaoran… be with Rika?

Syaoran took a couple of chocolate bars and showed them to Rika. "You want these?" he asked her.

"Oh… okay…" she said. He went to the cash register and paid for the candy from his own money.

I just… stared at them. I don't know why… but…

Gah, stop staring at them you idiot!

"Okay… here," said Syaoran as he gave Rika the bag.

"Oh?" said the cashier grinning. "You're a nice boyfriend, treating your girlfriend like that."

"Yeah, I guess," said Syaoran. I stared at him, but he avoided my gaze.

"Rika… let's go," he said as he placed an arm around her shoulders. "See you tomorrow Sakura."

Rika…?

"B-Bye Sakura-chan…!" said Rika as she smiled at me.

"Oh… bye…" I said as they both walked out. I watched them walk to his car and drive away…

Him and… Rika…? He even called her 'Rika.'

And…

He didn't deny that… she was his _girlfriend_. Does that mean… they're going out…?

I looked down at the chocolate bear.

Why does my chest hurt?

But… I can't think about that right now. I need to… apologize to Toya today.

When I came home at around five in the afternoon, I saw Toya's and Yukito's shoes on the doorstep.

I placed the bear chocolate on my desk and heard Yukito call me.

"Sakura-chan… I need to go buy something," he said. "I'll be right back."

I smiled at him… I knew what he wanted me to do. We both went downstairs and I watched him put on his shoes.

"Good luck… Sakura," he whispered as he stood up. I nodded.

"See you later," he said and he closed the door behind him. I slowly turned and walked up the stairs to Toya's room.

I knocked on the door.

"Yeah?" said Toya's voice. "Did you forget something Yukito?"

I slowly opened the door and saw Toya's eyes look at me and slowly stood up.

"Toya—I—" I started.

He walked to me so that we were only inches away from each other.

"I don't hate you Toya," I said. "What I said, I didn't mean it…!"

He looked down at me.

"I don't hate you!" I said. "I'm sorry. I know you're mad at me… but…!"

He suddenly grabbed me and hugged tightly against him.

"Ah…!"

"When I heard from Yukito—that you got attacked—" he said. "I was so scared that you…"

His voice trailed off. "Since the day Mom and Dad died—you were the only one I had left," he said. "I don't—I don't want to lose you too."

"Toya…" I said as I hugged him back.

We both lied down next to each other on our parent's bed like we used to when we were little (after they died).

"Hey… bro," I said.

"Hm?" he said.

"At our school—we have a café festival, can you come?" I said.

He faced me and smiled.

"I'll be there."

The door opened and we both stared at the person who came in. It was Yukito who was smiling more broadly than ever.

"I have pork buns," he said grinning as he held up a huge bag of something steaming.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Ah, I'm so happy Toya is talking to me now. He says so many funny things when we start a conversation, especially when Yukito is around. Though sometimes Toya is still annoying… he just can't give up calling me "monster" all the time…

I sighed as I placed my books into my book bag. Then I lied down on my bed. The festival is going to start the day after tomorrow…

_Ring Ring! Ring Ring!_

I picked it up and answered.

"Hello?"

"Sakura?"

It was Syaoran. The familiar queasiness inside me returned.

"Wh-what's up…?" I said slowly. Somehow my voice was a little shaky.

"Sakura… I need to tell you something," he said.

"What is it?"

"…"

He gave off some sort of restrained sigh.

"Syaoran…?"

"…Goodnight," he said finally.

Oh. So that was it…

"Oh… goodnight…" I said. I quickly ended the call.

Stupid Syaoran.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Café's tomorrow class," said Terada (is it me or did he look kinda pale?).

"Okay!" said the class. The bell rang.

"Class dismissed…" he said.

"Hey—why is Terada-sensei so down?" I whispered.

"I dunno either," said Naoko. "He stopped getting hate mails and stuff too. Wonder what's bothering him now."

However, Rika looked happier than ever. She seemed to exchange glances with Syaoran a lot.

Agh, stop it Sakura! You don't like him!

"Hey Rika-chan…!" I said as I gave her the chocolate bear. "I hope you feel better!"

"Oh! Thank you Sakura-chan!" she said happily.

"Hey Rika… let's go," said Syaoran as he took his and her book bags.

"Okay, bye guys!" said Rika cheerfully as they both walked out. Tomoyo looked a little surprised.

"Sakura-chan," she said. "You okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I said.

"…"

"Tomoyo-chan?" I said looking at her.

"Nothing," she said. "It's nothing."

I looked to where Syaoran left. Argh, I'm so mad at him right now. But I have no clue why…

Agh, stupid Syaoran…!

I didn't see Kazuma in class today. Someone said he stayed home sick… I guess he was really sick when I met him yesterday.

I walked out with Tomoyo and saw Syaoran and Rika together, talking and laughing.

"Eh…" I said.

Naoko and Chiharu looked surprised.

"What's with Li and Rika-chan?" said Naoko. "Wonder why they hang around so much."

"I guess Syaoran has the hots for Rika-chan now," I said forcefully. Chiharu, Naoko, and Tomoyo stared at me.

"Wh-what?" I said. "Why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"Nothing…" they said slowly.

There was a bang and a scream. We all ran to noise's source and to my horror, saw Syaoran on the ground.

"S-Syaoran!" I said as I ran to him. "Are you—?"

"Yeah," said Syaoran as he wiped his face which was partially covered with blood.

"What happened?" said Tomoyo as I helped Syaoran get up.

"I don't know… we were just going to his locker… and something exploded at him…!" said Rika.

"Crap… this isn't good," I said examining his face. There were small shards of glass stuck on his left upper cheek.

"Let's go to the nurse's office."

He didn't object and he, Rika, and I went immediately to the nurse's office while the rest began to clean up the blood on the floor. The nurse was busy taking care of some other student so she gave us a first aid kit.

"Ow…!" said Syaoran as I pulled a shard out with my fingers.

"Hold still, dummy!" I said. I looked through the box and found a pair of tweezers.

"Rika-chan, can you bring some napkins?" I said as I carefully took out another shard from his face.

Rika immediately brought some to me.

"Excuse me, where is his emergency card?" said the nurse.

"You don't need it," growled Syaoran.

"I-I'll go find it!" said Rika suddenly. "Sakura-chan, you can take care of him, I'm not good with blood…"

I had the feeling that Rika was getting reminded about Sai again.

"Oh… okay," I said.

"I'll be right back," she said and she quickly ran out with the nurse. I looked back at Syaoran and started to pluck out more of the glass.

"One more…" I said as I plucked the last shard.

"Agh…!" said Syaoran as I dampened some of the napkins with water.

"Here…" I said. I wiped off the blood from his face. "What happened?"

"I dunno," he said. "Some bottle exploded at my face… probably another prank."

"Like the incident with Sai?" I said as I took out the alcohol and medicine.

"Yeah…" he said. "Gah…!"

I had started to put some alcohol on his wound.

"Th-That hurts…!" said Syaoran as he started to flinch every time I dabbed the alcohol on his upper cheek.

"What did you expect?" I said as I finished putting medicine as well.

Indistinctively, I blew softly on his cut. "Better?" I said.

"Uh…yeah…" he said.

I took a patch and slowly placed it over the cut. "There…" I said as I softly smothered the patch so that it stuck to his face.

"Thanks…" he said.

"Yeah, no problem," I said. "You sort of scared me there Syaoran. There was a lot of blood, you know—ah!"

I tried to pick up the shards, but one of them cut my finger.

"Ah great—" I said dully as I saw that it began to bleed.

Syaoran suddenly took my hand and placed my finger in his mouth. I stared.

WH-WHAT THE HELL IS HE DOING?

"S-S-Syaoran—?!" I gasped.

He ignored me as he looked at my finger and continued to put it in his mouth as he looked for a band aid in the kit with his other hand. Then he quickly took out the wrapper with one hand and slowly wrapped the band aid on my cut.

"There…" he said. But he didn't let go of my hand.

"Th-Thanks…" I stammered. He stared at me intently.

"Sakura… I—" he started.

"Li-kun," said a voice. "Sakura-chan."

We turned and saw Rika smile at us nervously.

I pulled my hand from his grasp and quickly stood up. "Um… I better go now," I said.

"Hey—" started Syaoran.

"See you Rika-chan," I interrupted. "Take care Syaoran."

I dashed outside of the office and walked as I reached the hall.

Syaoran… what's going on? You shouldn't be doing those kinds of things… when you're with Rika…

What is he trying to pull?

**To be continued…**

Ooh, does Syaoran really like Rika? Are they really going out? What's up with Sakura too (she's getting a lot of mixed emotions, ehehe...)? Now you guys would ask, "Why Rika?" Well, she is one of my favourite characters in the CCS series ahahaha... I wanted to do a chappie about her. Well, until next time! Please review!


	15. Tomoeda Cafe

Yay everyone! A BIG surprise! Chapter 15! Wheee! I had some time this week to do this chapter! Enjoy!

**Chapter 15**

**Tomoeda Café **

**Sakura's POV**

"Sakura-chan, you look so cute!" said Tomoyo.

"Oh eh…" I said awkwardly. "It's just a uniform…"

"Yes, but a cute one!" she said. Tomoyo did really well in making our costumes. She claimed to have finished a set of thirty in a week (I almost didn't believe it, but I guess Tomoyo doesn't have her limits on making clothes…).

"Wow, I didn't expect so many customers!" said Naoko as we all stared at the number of people getting seated. The café took place in the gym, since the number of customers that arrived exceeded our expectations.

"Yeah, it's going to be great!" said Chiharu.

"Where's Rika-chan?" I asked.

"Probably with Li…" said Naoko.

"Eh… I see…" I said. Tomoyo looked at me worriedly.

"I'm… I'm okay Tomoyo-chan…" I said as I took a plate. "I don't care anymore…"

"I can't believe Li-kun is with Sasaki," Sakura heard Meiling say. "I mean, I thought being with Kinomoto is bad enough. Sasaki is just as ugly."

My fist almost jerked to her direction, but I managed to pull it towards the punch bowl, which splashed a little juice onto the table.

Why am I so pissed? It must've been Meiling's remark on Rika… yeah that's it…

It has nothing to do with Syaoran being with her…

_I'm over this…_

"Sakura-chan, are you alright?" said a voice. I turned and saw Kazuma stare at me. He was still pale and sickly since I met him at the store.

"I-I'm good…" I said. "I'm just—"

"Sakura-chan!" said another voice. I spun around to see Rika… and Syaoran.

"Oh, Rika-chan!" I said brightly.

Rika smiled at me, yet Syaoran stared at me.

"Hey, Syaoran," I said.

"Hey…" he said. He was also staring at Kazuma.

"Oh, um…" said Kazuma. "I need to go… to the restroom…"

"Oh, okay," I said.

"Hey, let me go with you," said Syaoran suddenly.

"Eh?" said Kazuma and I together.

Syaoran strode past me and placed a hand on Kazuma's shoulder. "C'mon, let's go," he said. "I need to ask you something…"

"Oh… okay," said Kazuma. They both walked to the restroom together.

What does Syaoran want from Kazuma?

"Sakura-chan… are you alright?" said Rika. "You don't look so good…"

"Oh um… I'm fine," I said.

_Say it…_

I can't…

_Say it…!_

I can't!

_SAY IT!_

I…

"How are you and Syaoran?" I blurted. Rika stared at me.

"Oh well, fine I suppose," she said smiling. "He's really nice to me."

"I… see," I said.

She smiled at me. "I'm really jealous of you Sakura-chan…" she said.

"Eh? For what?" I said, perplexed.

She smiled again. "For having… a great boyfriend," she said.

I was confused. I had a boyfriend? Since when?!

"But…" I started.

"Oh, Sakura-chan, I gotta go," she said, pointing to Terada who was waving at her.

"Oh…" I said. "Bye then."

She waved at me and ran to where Terada was.

I turned to get a glass of punch and froze as I saw Syaoran right next to me.

"Gah!" I said as I nearly dropped the cup.

"Thanks," he said as he took the cup and started to drink from it.

"How did you get here so fast?" I said.

"You didn't hear me?" he said as he finished drinking.

"No…" I said as I turned to see the customers and stood against the table behind me. He did the same.

We didn't talk for a while. The only thing he did was continue drinking the punch.

"So… Rika-chan seems better," I said forcefully.

"Yeah… I guess," he said slowly.

"That's good," I whispered. My hands clenched on the tablecloth.

Agh, stop it Sakura!

Then I felt something warm on top of my right hand. I looked down and saw Syaoran's hand rested lightly on top of mine.

He seemed to not have noticed.

I stared at him. He looked back at me and stared right back.

"What?" he said.

"Uh…" I started.

"Hey… I gotta go," he said suddenly. "See you."

"Oh… bye…" I said. He took off at the restroom again.

That was weird.

I stared at my right hand. It was really… warm…

"Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo as she came to me. "Rika-chan didn't come back from Terada's office. She had to pick up something, but she's not coming back. Can you go fetch her?"

"Sure," I said. Tomoyo said thanks, and I walked out of the gym, to the classrooms.

When I reached Terada's office, there was a huge box stuffed with light bulbs and wires. It was the only room lit.

"Here they are…" I said. Where's Rika?

"Sakura-san…" said a voice.

I turned and saw… Kazuma.

"Kazuma-kun?" I said. "What's wrong? What are you doing here?"

He was looking a little strange.

"Um… I need to tell you something…" he said as he slowly walked towards me. I saw someone sitting down on the chair and as I approached to her, her head was lopsided. It looked like she fainted. She looked like…

"Rika-chan!" I said as I tried to go to her, but Kazuma grabbed me by the arms.

Something was wrong.

"Let go Kazuma-kun!" I said. "Rika-chan is…!"

"I… I'm sorry," he said. "It's my entire fault."

"What…?" I said.

"I—" he stared.

"Now, now Ishimaru," said a voice. "You promised you wouldn't tell."

Kazuma gasped.

"That voice…" I said.

We both stared at the figure that approached us from the shadows.

It was Masashi Kurai…

The guy who gave me the chocolate box…

"M-Masashi…!" I breathed.

He smiled. "Oh hello Sakura-san," he said. "Quite a surprise to see you here. I only asked Rika-chan to come alone."

"Masashi-san, what's going on?" I said. "Why are you here?"

He pulled something out of his pocket. It was a knife. I stared.

Kazuma looked paler than ever.

"Masashi-san… what…" I said. I was frozen from fear. What is he doing?!

I heard Rika give a soft moan and she suddenly snapped awake.

"S-Sakura-chan? Where am I… oh…" she said. "Kurai-kun?"

Masashi ignored her.

"Sakura-san… I guess you didn't figure it out," he said. "I can't believe I actually liked you… but it was only because Rika-san rejected me…"

"Rejected?" I said as Rika stared.

"Yes Sakura-san," said Masashi as he advanced towards me with the knife. "I asked Rika-san out on Valentine's Day and she rejected me."

I looked at his sad face.

"I fell in love with her since the beginning of middle school," he said. "She was my closest friend… but she denied me of anything closer. Because… she fell in love with _him_."

"Who…?" I said as Rika gasped.

"D-don't…!" she started.

Masashi laughed. He was clearly insane.

"So… so was it you who—" I said.

"Yes," he said. "I was the one who killed Sai. I was the one who placed the bottle on Li's locker. Though… even a small interference didn't get in my way."

"Interference?" I said. Masashi's smile slowly turned into a contortion. "Daidouji…" he muttered.

"_Tomoyo-chan…?"_ I thought.

He looked at Kazuma who looked feebly at us.

"Ishimaru… was the one who saw me kill Sai," he said.

"So you threatened to kill him if he told anyone," I finished angrily.

"No," he said. "I didn't threaten to kill him. I ordered him not to tell. He works under our family."

I couldn't believe this. What the freak… why would Masashi do something as crazy as this? Just because he couldn't get a date with Rika…?

And Kazuma…

Masashi looked sadly at Rika.

"Oh Rika-san," he said. "If only you said 'yes' that day… nothing like this would've happened."

Rika began to cry. "You… you murdered Sai!" she cried. "And you hurt Li-kun!"

"Yes… but it was for all the best," as he walked to her, his tone careless. "If I couldn't have you… no one will."

"You crazy bastard!" I screamed as I jerked myself off of Kazuma's grip and punched Masashi on the face.

He toppled on the ground and slowly stood up, wiping the blood off his nose. He laughed again, a strange laughter.

I felt strong arms grab me again. It was Kazuma's.

"H-Hey let go, you bastard!" I cried. Kazuma failed to hear.

"If I threaten to kill you Sakura-san, Rika-chan will _have_ to be with me!" he said. "Not with that stupid _man_. This is going to be fun!"

"Not really," said a voice as something suddenly hit Masashi, who fell on the floor, nearly dazed.

I recognized that voice immediately.

"S-Syaoran?!" I said.

"Yeah?" he said as he appeared. I was actually happy to see him this time.

"You!" said Masashi thickly, for his mouth started to gush out blood.

Syaoran grabbed him by the collar and threw him on the wall. Then he picked up the dropped knife and stabbed the wall, near his face.

Masashi looked stunned as Syaoran whispered something to him.

Masashi slowly fell on the ground as Syaoran turned to look at Kazuma, who looked just as shocked as Masashi.

"And you… I'd let her go if I were you," he said to him. Kazuma's grip on me released.

"Sasaki, you okay?" said Syaoran as he undid the ropes.

Huh? Sasaki…?

"Y-Yes…" she said shakily. "Thank you, Li-kun."

He finally looked at me, his eyes unreadable. "Sakura…" he started.

"Freeze!" shouted a voice. All of us froze. The cops came and pointed guns at all of us.

"Him," said a familiar voice. Tomoyo appeared, pointing to the stunned Masashi. The police arrested him and dragged him out of the class. Kazuma was arrested as well.

"Tomoyo-chan!" I said as I ran to her.

"Sakura-chan, you're okay," she said, relieved. "Rika-chan, too."

"Yeah," I said.

Kazuma looked as though he was going to cry.

"I'm sorry… Sakura-san," he said. He was taken away.

We all went outside as the police cars began to put Masashi in the car. I tried to avoid Syaoran as I talked to Tomoyo.

"Tomoyo… how did you…?" I started.

"I'll tell you later," she said as she smiled at me. "We have work to do."

"Yeah… okay…" I said. She ran back to the café. The police cars left, and the people who were watching went back to the gym.

I was alone… with Syaoran.

**Syaoran's POV**

I took out my cigarette and stepped on it with my foot as I walked to Sasaki, who was talking to Mihara and Yamazaki.

"Sasaki…" I started.

She smiled at me. "Li-kun, thank you very much," she said as they went back to the café festival. "I think it's all okay now."

"Well… I guess," I said. I wasn't sure about Sakura.

"Li-kun… you should talk to her," she said. "I know she's pretty upset… but I'm sure it's going to be alright between you two."

"Yeah… thanks," I said.

I stared at Sakura who continued to talk to Daidouji. Looking at her… I remember what I told Masashi…

_If you ever try to hurt Sakura again…I will kill you._

I stared at my hand, which had a little bit of Masashi's blood on it.

Damn… to go that far…

Did I do the right thing?

Whatever, he was a punk anyway.

"Syaoran," said a voice which snapped me back to reality.

"Oh…" I said. Sakura was looking at me, her expression… soft.

"Thank you," she said, smiling. "I'm… I'm really glad you came."

I looked back and saw Tomoyo go back to the café. We were all alone outside.

"Yeah… no problem—" I said.

Suddenly she hugged me.

WHAT THE—?!

"I… I was so scared…" she said. I couldn't see her face.

Was she crying?

"Sakura…" I started.

"Can you… hold me for a while?" she said, her voice slightly muffled.

I saw her brown-haired head slowly press against my chest.

"…Okay," I said as I felt my arms wrap around her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Stupid Sakura. I knew she would get in trouble if she wandered off on her own.

Geez…

When she calmed down, she was going to tell me something, but Tomoyo interrupted and said she needed her.

"Sorry, Syaoran," she said. "I'll talk to you later."

She ran off with Tomoyo.

What the hell…

**Sakura's POV**

What was I thinking… hugging Syaoran.

It only made me feel worse. Well, at least Rika is okay now.

The café festival was finally over, and our school received second place. We would've won first… if it wasn't for Masashi.

Oh well… life's not fair.

Tomoyo and I sat together in the living room of Tomoyo's house eating cake. I asked her how she knew that he was the one who did it all.

"Masashi Kurai… was proven insane when he almost killed his father at the age of ten…" she explained (I gulped). "He was sent to a local asylum which was funded by my mother. I met him when he was getting released and I knew he wasn't ready, but the doctors ignored my warnings and released him to finish high school."

"Oh…" I said. "So… did you…?"

"Yes, I kept an eye on him," she said. "But he was good at hiding his emotions, the reason how he was released early, so I was convinced he was changing to normal."

She looked sadly at me.

"However, I was wrong," she continued. "I saw him ask Rika-chan out at Valentine's Day… and he kept asking Terada-sensei if he knew where Rika-chan lived. And when I saw Sai killed… I knew…"

She looked somewhere else and smiled at me. "I'm so sorry I couldn't tell you sooner," she said. "But I had to make sure."

"It's okay," I said. "Thank you. But man… no wonder our school has so much spirit… there's so much drama in it too."

"Yeah, pretty much," said Tomoyo. "But… some dramas are interesting."

"Hmm… really…" I said. "So what's going to happen to them?"

"Well… Masashi is going to stay in the asylum for a little while. And Ishimaru is going to a different school after he serves his time in jail for a while," she said.

"Why is Kazuma…?" I said.

"The Masashi family is quite wealthy, like my family and Li's," she explained. "But… their family ties are strict and firm to their old ways. The Ishimaru family serves the Masashi… no matter what. Ishimaru and Masashi are cousins… though Masashi has a higher status."

"I see…" I said.

"We won't be seeing them for a long time," she said.

But… I had the feeling Kazuma had really wanted to tell me.

"Sakura-chan… did you talk to him?" she said suddenly.

"Talk to who?" I said. She looked at me as though I was odd.

"Who do you think I'm talking to?" she said.

"Tomoyo-chan…" I said.

Her expression changed back to normal. "Oh all right," she said. "But you know… he's hiding something from you."

"You don't mean Syaoran…" I said. She looked away.

"That bastard," I murmured. "And I thought we were friends."

"It didn't look so to me," she said.

"Eh?" I said.

"If you're wondering… it's not in a bad way," she said.

I didn't get her at all.

"Uh—" I started.

_Ring Ring! Ring Ring!_

It was my cell phone. I looked to see who it was:

Sasaki Rika.

"Rika-chan?" I said as I began to answer. Tomoyo looked at me curiously.

"Sakura-chan? Oh good, you're awake," said Rika over the phone. "I was wondering if you can meet me at that candy shop that we met earlier, I need to talk to you about something."

"Oh… sure…" I said. "Right now?"

"Yes," she said. "See you!"

Click.

"Uh—Tomoyo-chan—" I said.

She gave a small laugh. "Go Sakura-chan," she said. "I'll see you tomorrow at school."

"Oh—okay," I said. I picked up my bag and headed to the candy shop.

I saw Rika sitting on an outside table waving at me. I ran to her and waved back.

"Hi Sakura-chan," she said. "I bought you coke."

"Thank you," I said as I sat down on the chair and took a sip of my soft drink.

"Sakura-chan, I wanted to thank you for what you did yesterday," she said. "And… I'm really sorry that you got hurt."

"Oh, I'm fine," I said, a little surprised. "I'm not hurt."

"Not… that way," she said.

Now Rika confused me. What is she talking about?

"You… and Li-kun are close aren't you?" she said softly.

"Don't worry…" I said hesitating. "Syaoran and I… I… don't think we're close at all. We're just friends."

Yes… that was all. Just… friends.

"I see," she said slowly. "Well… I just wanted you to know. Oh, and please take this. It's from… well… that's not really important. That person wanted to give it to you sooner, but there was no time."

She handed me a small bag. It was stuffed with colored tissue.

"What is it?" I said.

"Can you open it… when you get home?" she said.

"Oh… sure," I said. She smiled.

"Thank you."

"Hey," said a hurried voice as the person sat right next to me and placed an arm on my chair. It took me a whole second to realize who it was.

"S-Syaoran?!" I finally exclaimed, nearly jumping back. He looked sort of tired, as though he had run for quite a while. He grabbed my coke cup.

"Yeah, hey," he repeated as he took a huge gulp out of my soda.

"Hello, Li-kun," said Rika smiling.

"Hey, Sasaki," he said as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

"What are you doing here…?" I said.

"Nothing," he replied simply.

"…"

"Well, I better get home," said Rika standing up. "Thanks for talking with me Sakura-chan. I'll see you both tomorrow at school!"

"Bye Rika-chan!" I said. Syaoran just gave a nod.

She waved back and took a taxi.

Syaoran turned and took Rika's seat.

"Hey…" he said staring at the bag that Rika gave me.

"What is it?" I said.

"Nothing…" he said. He looked back at me. He looked… like his old self again.

"Didn't you want to tell me something?" he asked.

"Eh? No…" I said.

"Oh…"

There was a long uncomfortable pause.

"Uhm…" I said. I stared at the soda cup that he drank from.

"Oh… sorry I took your drink," he said. "I'll buy you a new one."

"No, it's okay—!" I said.

He called the waiter and ordered another drink, paying for the old one. He took out some more money from his wallet and placed it down on the table.

"Here… I ordered the same one," he said. I took my new cup of coke and slowly sipped it. I watched him tilt the old cup down to his mouth and eat the ice.

Whoa… he's sweating a lot… GAH! DON'T STARE!

"I guess I should go," he said. "You don't want me here, do you?"

"Oh…" I said. "I… don't care."

"Really? Well, I gotta go anyway," he said, giving me a small smile. "See you, Sakura. Thanks for the drink."

He threw away his cup and walked towards his car. Then he turned and suddenly grabbed my arm.

"Hey—what are you—?" I started, as I spilled some soda.

"You don't have a ride do you?" he said. "Where do you think you're going to go?"

"Eh…" I said. I forgot about home! Tomoyo was the one who picked me up from my house.

"Syaoran…" I started.

"I'll take you home. You can finish the soda in my car," he said.

"Oh okay…" I said. "Thank you."

"No problem…" he said. He only let go of my hand when I sat down on my seat.

We so totally looked like a couple back there. Sigh.

We didn't say much when he was driving. Until…

"Hey, what did you think about the café?" he said.

"Eh… okay," I said.

"Really? I thought it was lame."

"Why do you think that?"

"That Masashi guy… he killed it."

"How?" I asked.

"He made me worry too much," he replied, though I could barely hear it.

"Wh…" I started.

"Hey, here's your house," he said as he stopped the car. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

He said this rather fast, as though he was in a hurry.

"Thanks," I said as he nodded.

When I reached to my door, he sped away. I went inside to see no shoes. Toya and Yukito must have gone out.

I took the bag and slowly placed it on my bed. Then I took out the tissues and slowly brought out the gift before me.

I stared for a minute.

Oh my… god.

It was the chocolates that Syaoran bought with Rika at the candy store… where I met them. I thought…

I thought the chocolates were for her. And it's… my favorite kind of chocolate bars…

Then I suddenly remembered…

"_You're a nice boyfriend, treating your girlfriend like that."_

And Syaoran… didn't deny.

Was he… thinking about me?

A letter slowly fell out of the bag. I opened it with trembling fingers.

"Syaoran…you idiot…" I whispered as I slowly smiled, and a tear dropped on the letter.

_Hey Sakura,_

_I'm going to pretend that I'm going out with Sasaki. I know it's kind of stupid, but I think I know who killed Sai. I'm not going to tell you, since it's probably going to freak you out. Anyway, I don't know why I'm even writing a freaking letter, but I just want to say I'm sorry if you ever get mad about this. You know, since it's all weird and shit. The person who's behind this is obviously obsessed with Sasaki, and if we just pretend that we like each other, it'll get the guy to try to get at me. Maybe then, I'll be able to make sure it's the right guy that I suspected. Look out for yourself, since you're a klutz at things. Try to act smarter than you are now. Haha, I'm just kidding. Peace out._

_Li Syaoran_

**To be continued…**

Haha, you all thought it was Kazuma! Well, you were half right, since he was a part of it. But I guess no one paid attention to Masashi. Oh well! Ahh, isn't Syaoran the sweetest thing? Well, maybe sometimes, ahahaha... Anyways, no cliffhangers for this chap, but I think I'll make the next one a cliffhanger (I already planned it out!). Please review!


	16. A Secret Whisper

Oh yeah! Chapter 16! Enjoy guys!

**Chapter 16**

**A Secret Whisper**

**Syaoran's POV**

_Hi Syaoran! Nice weather today isn't it?_

You…

_Ooh, what a cute bear! What's his name? He's a girl? Oh, I'm sorry!_

Where… are you?

_Syaoran… I think I…_

"Hey! Wake up Li!" said Takashi as he hit my head with a book. "Quit falling asleep!"

"Gah!" I said angrily as I jerked awake. "What?!"

"Ooh, what a monster," teased Takashi. "Did Syao-bozu get cranky from his nappy-poo?"

"Shut up," I grumbled as I felt my stomach. I felt a familiar sharp pain there.

_That voice…_

It sounded familiar.

"Hey Li… you okay?" said Eriol as he looked at me.

"What…?" I said sleepily.

Takashi placed a hand on my head.

"Whoa, are you sick?" he said as he shook the hand that touched me.

"No…" I said stubbornly.

"Eh Li, how could—?" started Eriol.

"Hey guys!" said Sakura as she walked into the class.

"Hi Kinomoto," said Takashi as Eriol smiled at her.

"Hi…" I said as I rested my head on my arm again. The pain was growing stronger every second.

"Hey, Syaoran, are you alright?" said Sakura.

"Uh… yeah…" I said groggily. "Why…?" She knelt down next to me and I saw her hand outstretched towards me…

Damn, if she touches me then—

"AH!" I yelled as I stood up from my chair.

Eriol, Yamazaki, and Sakura stared at me.

"Uh… Li?" said Eriol uncertainly.

"Hey—I feel great!" I nearly shouted as I felt my head pounding in agony. "What good weather today! I feel like going outside—See you guys later!"

I bolted out of the door. Damn—I feel like I'm going to pass out…

**Sakura's POV**

Whoa, was it me or was Syaoran being really weird today?

I asked that aloud to Eriol and Yamazaki.

"Yeah… I think it's him," said Takashi. "But that's because he's—"

"He probably drank a lot of coffee or something today," interrupted Eriol. "You know how people are when they're on too much caffeine."

"Yeah… I guess," I said.

I wonder what happened.

I saw Syaoran nearly run away from me when I tried to talk to him later that day. What does he think I have, cooties?!

"Hey Syaoran!" I nearly yelled as I saw him freeze near his locker.

"Er… yeah?" he said, nearly shouting again.

"What's up? Is something wrong?" I said as I walked up to him.

"No, I need to go somewhere," he said quickly as he grabbed his backpack. "See you."

He ran away from me again.

What the heck?

When the school bell rang for the end of the day, I walked outside with Tomoyo and saw Syaoran lying next on the cherry blossom tree's roots.

"What is he doing?" I said staring.

"Looks like he's taking a nap," said Tomoyo. "He seemed really sleepy today."

"Eh…" I started. Tomoyo smiled.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Sakura-chan," she said. She walked with Rika out of class.

I ran outside as well towards the trees and saw Syaoran, who was asleep.

Hmph, he ditched the last two periods of class…

**Syaoran's POV**

Crap… my stomach hurts like crazy. What's wrong with me?

I felt a cherry blossom petal touch my cheek. It fell down slowly into my outstretched hand.

It's nice to have some peace here…

I can barely open my eyes. I'm so tired…

_Syaoran… wake up…_

That voice…

I slowly opened my eyes and saw a pair of bright green eyes.

"Ah!" I said as I nearly jumped back.

It was Sakura.

"What is it…?" I said drowsily as I looked at her.

"Syaoran, wake up," she repeated. "School is over… and almost everyone left."

"What… are you doing here?" I said as I yawned.

Oh yeah, I ditched the last two periods to sleep…

"I was just… passing by and I saw you," she said slowly. "How come you didn't come to class?"

"Uh…" I said. "I was really tired… I needed some sleep…"

"That's not a good excuse," said Sakura.

A sharp spasm of pain shot across my stomach. I staggered backwards towards the tree.

"Hey… what's wrong?" said Sakura. I quickly grabbed my backpack.

"It's… it's nothing," I said. "Anyways… I need to hurry and get home. See you, nerd."

I smirked. She grimaced when I patted her head and then I turned to leave.

"Bye Syaoran."

She said that so oddly.

"Eh… bye."

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Ugh… my head…

Why does it hurt so much? Did I eat something weird? I'm not that sick am I?

_Hee hee! Syaoran!_

Who…?

_Syaoran! You have a fever? _

Amamiya?

_Here, this will help! My mother made me this all the time! Isn't it yummy? Tee hee!_

My eyes snapped open. I sat up from my bed as I wiped the sweat off my brow.

It's so cold…

"Water…" I muttered.

I went down the hall and saw that my mother was nowhere to be seen. What time was it?

I slowly went downstairs and walked to the kitchen. My body started to shake from the cold as I tried to look for a cup.

I looked up at the clock and saw that it was six in the evening.

Oh right… she went to that stupid meeting…

My hands trembled as they reached for the water pitcher.

When I tried to pour the water in the cup, my hands shook so badly that I lost my grip on the glass and it fell…

CRACK.

"Fuck…" I muttered as I started to pick up the glass pieces. "Ouch—"

_Ding dong!_

Huh? Who was that?

I started to open the door.

"Who's there…?" I said slowly. I stared.

"Syaoran…"

Sakura looked at me with a confused expression.

"Uh… what are you doing here?" I said loudly again.

"Er…" she said. "You forgot your math book…"

She took out my trig book and handed it to me.

"Oh… thanks," I said. I grabbed the book, but it suddenly dropped to the floor.

"…"

"Um—" said Sakura.

"I got it…" I said. I reached down for the book, but the pain in my stomach began to take its toll again.

"…!"

I fell on my knees.

"Syaoran?" said Sakura as she knelt beside me. "What's—?"

"You… you can go now," I said. "I'm fine… go…"

"S-Syaoran?!" said Sakura as I lost my balance and stared to fall. She caught me in her arms.

And before I knew it… I fainted.

How lame is that?

**Sakura's POV**

"I see…" said Eriol's voice on the phone.

"Did you know, Eriol-kun?" I said. "About—"

"Yes…" said Eriol slowly.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I said.

"Well first of all… it seemed like Li didn't want to tell you," he said. "If I told you, he would probably be mad at me. I thought you would figure it out anyway."

"Eh…" I said. I wonder why Syaoran didn't want to tell me… or why he was trying to hide the fact that he was sick.

"I'm coming over," said Eriol. "After I go buy him some medicine…"

"Oh… okay," I said.

"Don't use the medicine in his house," warned Eriol. "See you later."

"Wait—why—?" I started

Click.

Eh…

I walked to the couch, where Syaoran was sleeping. His face was streaming with sweat. I placed a damp cloth over his forehead and cleaned up the glass in the kitchen.

There were some blood stains on the broken glass.

"Oh no…" I murmured as I went back to Syaoran… and sure enough I saw that some of his fingers were bleeding.

I looked around for bandages, but couldn't find any… so I got some tissue and wrapped them around his fingers.

"Sakura…" I heard him whisper. I looked up and saw Syaoran, struggling to stay awake.

"Syaoran, how do you feel?" I said as I sat by him.

"Like… crap," he said.

"Where's the medicine," I said. "I'll get it for you."

"Don't…" he said. "Just… go home."

"Are you stupid?" I said. "I can't just leave you. I was so worried about you!"

I stared at him.

"_What's wrong with you? You scared the hell out of me!"_

He was so worried about me… when I was sick. I guess I know how he feels now…

Syaoran looked at his slightly bandaged fingers.

"You… are such a noob at this," he said.

"Hmph," I said. He's sick but still rude.

I wonder why Eriol said to not use the medicine that Syaoran already has. Are they expired or something?

I looked around the cabinets, ignoring Syaoran as he told me to go home. He started to cough.

"Hm?" I said. Through the glass I saw some cough and cold syrup bottles and pills.

I took a strong syrup bottle and a spoon with a small cup of water.

"Here Syaoran," I said as I sat next to him and lifted up his head. He sleepily looked at me and stared at the medicine.

I know Eriol told me to not to use the medicine here, but the expiration dates were not until way later.

I think Eriol meant the medicines that were expired… I saw some that were quite old.

"No… stop," he said as I lifted the spoon to his mouth.

"Don't be stupid, just drink it," I said as I poured a couple of tablespoonfuls of medicine into his mouth.

He coughed again and I helped him drink the water. Then I settled him back down on the couch and watched him fall asleep again.

I sighed and washed the cup and spoon.

I hope he feels better soon…

I placed a chair next to the couch. I slowly took off the cloth from his forehead and felt around his face.

It was getting cooler. The medicine was working…

I placed the cloth back on his brow and watched him sleep. Watching him sleep… is making me sleepy…

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Everything was pitch black…

_Um… S-Sakura?  
_

Huh?

_Th-thanks for… the milk…_

Milk? What milk…?

_It… it was really good. Thanks…_

_Tee hee! No problem!_

Who was that?

I blinked and found myself in the living room again. Syaoran was still asleep and the room looked darker than it had before.

"Oh no… I fell asleep," I muttered as I looked at the clock. It was nearly eight pm. Two hours passed by…

Where's Eriol?

I heard a groan and looked back at Syaoran. He slowly looked up at me and then at the clock.

"Why didn't you go home?" he said quietly.

"Er… I had to make sure you were okay," I said. "Here…"

I brought the medicine and gave it to him.

"I'll have it later," he said. "Just… go home."

That made me… snap a little.

"Stop telling me what to do!" I said angrily. "Quit whining and eat the damn medicine!"

He looked at me, startled. I shoved the cup onto his hand and poured some cough syrup into a spoon.

"Wait… was that… from the cabinet?" he said.

"Er… no," I lied.

I handed him the medicine and he slowly drank it and frowned.

"Are you sure?" he said.

"Yes… I bought it while you were sleeping," I lied again. He drank the water and his frown deepened.

"This is the medicine—" he started.

"Time to go to sleep!" I said quickly as I tried to make him lie back down on the bed. He suddenly hung his head.

"Uh… Syaoran?" I said slowly. "What's—?"

He giggled.

WHAT THE—?

He looked at me and smiled oddly, as though he liked nothing more in the world than just to smile at me…

"Er Syaoran?" I said. "You okay…?"

"You silly lady," he said. "That medicine… was from _my_… cabinet…"

Something told me that Eriol had a good reason why he warned me not to use that medicine…

Syaoran suddenly grabbed my arms and pulled me in so close that our noses almost touched. He looked at me for a brief minute, and then smiled again.

"You're… pwetty," he said.

Oh god...

I looked at the bottle.

_Please keep out of reach from children. Contains a mild dose of alcohol._

Don't tell me that you're…

"Drunk!" I said.

"Wha?" he said hazily.

"You're… you're drunk!" I said.

How could Syaoran get so weird after drinking medicine? Come to think of it I never saw Syaoran drink alcohol before… but I always thought he was the kind of person who _would_ drink… I mean, he does smoke a lot…

Was that why Eriol warned me? And Syaoran didn't want to eat that medicine?

"Come… here…" he said as he grabbed my arm and started to pull me towards him.

"G-get away!" I said, flinging my arms so that he would let go.

"Give me a kissy-poo!" he crooned as he attempted to grab at me again.

"No!" I said as I pushed him away.

This is ridiculous! It's not even that much alcohol!

I can't believe this…

Where are you, Eriol?!

"Kiss! Kiss!" said Syaroan dreamily.

"NO!" I shouted. He suddenly grabbed my arm really hard and pulled me towards his face.

He looked into my eyes and stared at me sternly. He started to pant in pain, with his other hand clutching his stomach.

"Oh…!" I said. "Are you alright…?"

He grinned stupidly.

"Pretty!" he exclaimed as he hugged me.

"Yeek!" I cried as we both fell on the ground.

"N-never mind… y-you're not alright…" I said as I rubbed my head. I looked up and saw that he was on top of me.

He smiled again.

"Chu…!" he said as he leaned towards me.

"No—stop!" I said, blushing. His lips smacked into mines.

I have to say… for a sick guy… his lips are really soft—NO! I CAN'T THINK THAT WAY!

"Mmph!" I tried to scream as Syaoran hugged me even tighter.

I tried to push him away, but he grabbed my free hands and forced them to stay by my sides.

I thought he was sick!

My brain was going haywire…

My heart was thumping like there was no tomorrow…

And a little voice in my head said…

_You've always wanted this._

NO I DON'T! DAMN VOICE-IN-MY-HEAD!

Someone… anyone… help me…

I think he's doing the _French_!

KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Suddenly Syaoran went off of me, and his arms released mines. I looked up and saw Eriol pull him from the arms, away from me.

"You okay, Sakura-san?" said Eriol.

"Y-Yeah…" I said.

We both heard snoring. Syaoran was limp in Eriol's arms.

"I-Is he already asleep?" I said as Eriol settled him back down on the couch.

"Yeah…" said Eriol. He turned to me.

"Did you give him the medicine that I told you not to give him?" he said slowly.

"Er… but they're not expired or anything—" I started.

"Well as you can figure out…" said Eriol. "Li has a very low tolerance of alcohol."

"Why is that?" I said as I watched Syaoran sleep.

"Dunno," said Eriol as he took out a bag of medicine from his backpack. "He just does."

I sighed.

"He doesn't get sick very easily," said Eriol. "But… when he does… it takes a long time for him to get well."

"How did he get sick…?" I said.

"I have a hunch," he said as he lifted up Syaoran's shirt.

"Ah! What are you doing?!" I said, going red in the face.

"Don't worry, I'm not stripping him," said Eriol, a little annoyed. "Look…"

I looked at Syaoran's stomach and gasped. The wound that he got on his stomach before started to bleed and had a weird black color surrounding it.

"His… his stomach wound…" I said.

"Yeah…" said Eriol. "He got lazy when he was supposed to clean it everyday for a few weeks, so it got infected some time ago. No wonder he didn't get any better."

Eriol watched me stare at the wound.

"If you were wondering why he was basically screaming at you all the time… or why he was running away…" he said. "It looked like to me that…"

"He didn't want me to know that he was sick…" I finished sadly.

Syaoran… why are you always so lonely?

I helped Eriol put some medicine on the stomach wound and wrapped a few bandages around it.

"Well… I think this is good enough," said Eriol as he put the remaining bandages away.

"Eriol-kun… you're really good at this," I said.

"Eh, it's nothing," said Eriol. We watched Syaoran continue to sleep for a while.

"So…" said Eriol finally. "Did he say anything embarrassing?"

"Huh?" I said.

"Well, when Li's drunk he says weird stuff," he said. "Like last time, he said he still collected Pokemon cards and asked me to trade a holographic Venasaur for—"

"No…" I said. "It's just that—"

But Eriol knew what I meant.

"Was that your first kiss?" he said smiling.

"Y-yes…" I said. Eriol chuckled.

Even though Syaoran did kiss me before… it was only for that play…

But overall… Syaoran… did steal my first kiss…! That bastard!

"But… you know what's amusing…" said Eriol. "What Li says when he's drunk… it's always true."

"True…" I repeated.

"Yeah, like after he said he collected Pokemon cards, I found a Pikachu card in his room," said Eriol grinning. "Sometimes it's funny."

"_You're… pwetty." _

I wonder if Syaoran really thinks that I am… pretty…

He always said that I looked ugly. Was he lying then?

"Syaoran's really selfish," I said slowly.

"Why do you think that?" said Eriol softly.

"He didn't tell me that he was sick… and it made me worried about him," I said.

"Well, I would have to disagree of what you think he is," he said. "Li… may be a jerk sometimes… but…"

He slowly smiled.

"He really cares about you."

"Cares about me?" I said. "How…?"

"He probably didn't want you to know he was sick… because he was afraid you would be worried about him," he said. "Maybe … if he didn't say anything… his fever would probably go away, and it would look like nothing had ever happened."

"Eriol-kun…" I said.

"If I was Li… I wouldn't tell you either," said Eriol. "I think… he considers you a really close person to him… er… even though he doesn't show it."

"That's what… Tomoyo-chan said," I said.

"Oh really?" said Eriol, quite delighted to hear that. "Well, I'm glad I'm not the only person who thinks that way."

I touched Syaoran's hand. It was warm, but not to a fever degree.

"I'm glad… he's getting better," said Eriol.

I nodded.

"Me too."

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"How are you feeling?" I said as Syaoran placed his backpack on the desk.

"I'm okay," he said. "That medicine worked pretty well…"

He looked at me oddly.

"Er…" he started.

"What?" I said.

"Did I… do anything weird?" he said.

"You don't remember?" I asked innocently.

"Not really," he said. "All I remember was that you… gave me medicine… and I blacked out."

"Well, not really," I said.

"Oh…" he said. There was a very small pause.

"Syaoran… I was… well," I said finally. "I just wanted you to know that… I was really worried about you."

Syaoran stared at me.

I gave him a small smile.

"Promise me that… if you're having any problems… just tell me okay?" I said. "I may not know everything but… I'll try my best to help you…"

"Sakura…" he said.

I beamed at him. "You gave me quite a scare though," I said. "When you collapsed and all… weren't you embarrassed?"

"Eh… probably," he said. "But… I guess its okay, since it was you."

I turned a little red.

"Oh…" I said.

He looked at me, but didn't smile. His expression was a little puzzled.

"What's wrong?" he said.

"Um… thanks," I said blushing. "For… for thinking about me…"

"Oh…" he said, blushing as well as he started to sit down.

I eyed Eriol who nodded and grinned.

"So I heard you're still collecting Pokemon cards," I said as I amusingly watched Syaoran fall of his chair.

"Look, I threw them away alright?!" he snapped as he quickly stood up and I laughed.

**To be continued…**

Haha, Syaoran and his Pokemon cards! Gotta love him! Thanks for reading and I hope you review! And if you didn't read my new fanfic, Hello Neighbor, check it out!


	17. A New Tutor?

Yay everyone! Chapter 17 is HERE! Yippie! Hurray! Wahoo!

**Chapter 17**

**A New Tutor?**

**Syaoran's POV**

"And after you carry the 'x' here, you subtract the five on this side of the equation…" lectured the teacher. The classroom was filled with a long droning sound of the teacher's voice.

I forgot what the teacher said after that… because I fell asleep until the class was over.

I looked up and saw Sakura who sat next to me when lunch started.

"Wake up, sleepyhead," she said as she poked me with her pencil.

"Why?" I said, annoyed. "It's lunch time…"

"So? Aren't you hungry?" she said as she went through her backpack.

"No," I lied, my stomach slightly growling.

"You say that now," she said as she took out an elaborately colored box. She opened it and it had six huge onigiri inside.

"Here, it's a get-well present from me," she said as she placed the box on my desk. I was wide awake.

"These two have salmon inside. These have katsuobushi in them," said Sakura as she pointed at the rice balls. "And these two has umeboshi."

She smiled as she gave me a napkin.

"You should at eat something healthy for at least _one_ day," she said. "So your wound will heal faster."

"Er…" I said slowly. "Thanks…"

She beamed. "No problem," she said.

"Oh?" said Daidouji as she walked in to eat lunch with Sakura.

"Hi Tomoyo-chan!" said Sakura.

"Hi Sakura-chan," said Daidouji smiling. "Wow Li, you're actually eating lunch that someone made for you!"

A few people turned to look at me. Yamazaki gasped in envy as Eriol laughed.

"Yeah so?" I said thickly as my mouth was filled with rice and salmon. "I was hungry."

Daidouji stared at me. Then she beamed, just like Sakura.

"How exciting!" she squealed.

"Eh?" Sakura and I said at the same time.

"Nothing, nothing!" sang Daidouji as she sat next to Sakura.

Daidouji gets weirder every time I see her.

"What are you guys looking at?" I demanded as the students that stared at me froze. They quickly turned away and started to mutter amongst themselves.

Tomoyo and Eriol smiled at both of us; meaning Sakura and me.

"Hey they look like…" she said.

"A picture perfect couple," finished Eriol.

"Eh?!" said Sakura, going slightly red.

"Ew," I said. Sakura gave me a disapproving look.

"Aw, lucky bastard," said Yamazaki. "How come Li gets to eat the good food?"

Eriol laughed as I ate another rice ball in front of Yamazaki's face.

**Sakura's POV**

I hope Syaoran enjoyed the lunch I made for him. I bet his mom doesn't have time to take care of him… her being busy and all.

But anyway, in just a couple of months, the school year will end. How exciting is that?

"What are you guys doing this summer?" I said as I sat down on my desk. Class was going to start in ten minutes.

"Oh, I'm going to Hawaii," said Tomoyo happily.

"Really? So am I!" said Eriol. They both cheered together.

"I'm going to help my dad build a car," said Yamazaki.

"Ooh, Yamazaki, I wanna watch!" said Chiharu.

"I'm going to enter the summer horror festival contest," said Naoko as she pushed up her glasses to the bridge of her nose so that the lenses flashed. "And spend the night at a haunted house."

"Oh… that's… nice," I said, forcefully.

Syaoran was reading some sort of book as he was lazily sitting down on his desk.

"What about you, Syaoran?" I asked.

"Nothing really," he replied as he turned a page.

I looked to see what he was reading, but the cover just had a blank green color.

"What are you reading?" I said curiously.

"Something," he said as he turned another page.

"Lemme see," I said as I grabbed the book.

"Wow," he said dully as he watched me scan a page.

I didn't get what he was reading at all.

There was some girl named Avalon… and some guy named Showron…

Capturing cards? What cards? And how can you 'capture' them? And—

"Kero!" I said suddenly.

"Kero?" said Tomoyo as Syaroan snatched the book away from me.

"Quit grabbing people's stuff, stupid," he said as he continued reading.

"Kero… Kero…" I muttered, trying to remember why the name sounded vaguely familiar. "My stuffed animal!"

"So?" said Syaoran.

"Oh, Kero-chan?" said Tomoyo. "From Cardcaptors?"

"What's 'Cardcaptors?'" I asked.

"Oh, it's a really cute story about a girl named Avalon—" started Tomoyo.

"It's just a story," interrupted Syaoran. "It's not that important."

"But you're the one reading it," I said. Syaoran gave me a quick glare.

"It's something I read when I was a kid, okay?" he said.

"Didn't think you'd like shoujo-type stories," I said casually as Syaoran nearly lost his balance.

"It's not shoujo!" he snapped.

"Okay, when a story is 'cute' it's usually a shoujo type—" I started.

"_She _thinks it's cute," said Syaoran as he eyed Tomoyo. She merely shrugged and smiled at me.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"You're last test scores were a little better," said Terada as he handed out the test papers.

I looked at mine and groaned. It was a C minus.

"Sakura-chan, what did you get?" said Tomoyo.

"I failed…" I sighed as the bell rang.

Syaoran looked at his test and crumpled it up. He was about to throw it away, but Yamazaki grabbed it and looked at what he got.

"Perfect score as always," he said.

"You get A's on your math tests?" I said, amazed.

"Uh… yeah," said Syaoran boringly.

"If he would just do his homework and not skip lessons," said Eriol. "He would be getting an A in this class."

"Oh…" I said, putting my math book back in my backpack.

"Sakura-chan, you're having a rough time, aren't you?" said Tomoyo. "Math is hard."

"Yeah, I hate it," I said.

"Hey, I know!" said Tomoyo. "Li, why don't you tutor Sakura-chan for a while?"

"EH?" I said, going slightly red.

"Why?" said Syaoran. "She's fine by herself."

"Sorry Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo as she handed Syaoran my test.

"No—wait—stop!" I started. I watched in horror as Syaoran read my test score.

"Wow, are you stupid or what?" said Syaoran as he threw the paper back at me. "You make the dumbest mistakes."

"Yeah, thanks for your support," I said sarcastically.

"So? Why don't you tutor Sakura-chan?" said Eriol. "It'll be like old times, since she tutored you last time."

"…"

"Hey… hold on guys—" I started.

"No thanks," said Syaoran. "I don't have time tutoring someone—"

Then I said something _really _stupid.

"Hey!" I said angrily. "And who's the person who spent her school year helping you pass your midterm exams?!"

"Touché," said Yamazaki grinning as Syaoran sighed.

"Damn straight," I said.

"Alright, alright!" said Syaoran. "I'll help you study your stupid math."

Wait a minute… it wasn't supposed to be like this! I didn't _want_ him to tutor me!

Oh my god… I'm so… DUMB!

"Oh w-wait…" I started aloud.

"Then it's settled!" said Tomoyo. "Where are you guys tutoring then?"

"Why are you so _bouncy_ today?" said Syaoran. Tomoyo gave him a humongous beam.

"I can be bouncy if I want," she said.

Tomoyo, you devious little…

Syaoran looked at me with a confused expression pasted on his face. He didn't get what Tomoyo was leading him on to.

But I did.

"Oh, Sakura-chan," muttered Tomoyo. "I don't think it's wise that you do the tutoring at _your_ house…"

She glanced anxiously at Syaoran, rocking her head towards his direction every now and then.

"Er… yeah…" I said as I finally caught on. Tomoyo knew that Toya would never forgive me if I let Syaoran in the house.

Poor Syaoran, however, didn't get what we were talking about and grew increasingly annoyed by our fragmented mumbles.

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" he said, his impatience reaching to its limit.

"Er, I think it's good if you guys tutor at _your_ house," said Tomoyo, looking at Syaoran.

"Uh… okay…" said Syaoran slowly. Tomoyo smiled at both of us. Eriol and Yamazaki grinned. Naoko and Chiharu sighed dreamily. I frowned.

Crap…

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Have fun!" sang Tomoyo as she and the others began to walk out of the parking lot. Syaoran and I watched them wave at us and giggle amongst themselves.

"Why are they all weird?" he said.

"I dunno," I lied as we both turned around and walked to his car.

When we reached to his car, he asked, "Do you have anything valuable in your backpack?"

"Er, not really—" I started. And before I said another word, he grabbed my bag and threw it in the back seat along with his own backpack.

"Geh…" I said as I saw him face the wheel so that he would start the car.

"What is it?" he said as he noticed my stare.

"Oh… nothing," I said.

He started the car as I tried to buckle the seatbelt. I didn't know what was wrong with me… but… my fingers kept trembling so I couldn't get the buckle down.

He looked at me as though I had just done something really random.

Stupid… seatbelt!

Syaroan watched me struggle on putting my seatbelt on. Then he gave a quick sigh and grabbed my hands, stilling my motions.

I felt his soft, warm hands slowly pry mine from the buckle and secure the belt by my side.

I tried to say, "Thanks," but my throat lost his voice. Though, he spoke first.

"There," he said nonchalantly as he began to straighten up so that he would start driving.

"Th-thanks…" I croaked.

I saw him place a hand on the arm of my seat and look back as he reversed. I gave a huge, involuntary sigh as my body slightly shuddered. I slowly closed my eyes, trying to relax in the seat during the ride.

When we stopped at a red light, his eyes flashed at my direction.

"What's wrong?" he said suddenly. My eyes fluttered open.

"N-nothing," I said; my voice was still raspy. I cleared my throat and said, more confidently, "Nothing."

"Huh," he said as he continued to concentrate on the road; the green light flashed.

He didn't believe me.

When we reached his house, he pulled both backpacks, his and mine, over one of his shoulders and walked through the gate.

"H-Hey…!" I said as I caught up with him. "Why are you carrying my bag?"

"Isn't it heavy?" he said as he looked at me. I stared.

He looked back at the door and fished out his keys. The door slowly creaked open and the bolts whined as we both walked inside the house.

A maid suddenly appeared and bowed to both of us.

That's strange; I never saw her before. Syaoran read my mind.

"She was on vacation," he whispered as he amusingly watched me stare at her in amazement.

"Oh…" I whispered back.

"Welcome, Syaoran-sama," said the maid. "Your mother is currently attending a meeting. Shall I get you something to eat or drink?"

"Two sodas," said Syaoran as he removed his shoes and placed them carelessly by the door. I took off my shoes as well, but I decided to neatly place them beside his.

"As you wish," said the maid as she straightened his shoes. Syaoran walked up the stairs, still carrying both of the backpacks, as I slowly followed behind.

We went to his room and he asked me to wait on the couch while he changed clothes.

After he was done, we both sat opposite of each other of the table. I looked attentively at him as he began to take out a couple of math books.

"How come you're so good at math?" I asked without thinking.

"Dunno," he replied. "I just am."

He grinned at me as he looked up. Somehow, his smile was a little…

I dunno…

"So, what are you having problems with?" he said as he started to flip open the textbook. The maid came in with our drinks and bowed to us again.

"That's odd," I said when she left. He looked up at me again.

"What?"

"You're… not being lazy."

"Okay…"

"I mean," I said quickly. "Like when I first tutored you, you always smoked or text messaged someone."

"Oh," he said. "Are you saying that you don't want to tutor?"

"No, no," I said, completely flustered. "I mean…"

"I don't really text," he said. "Only if it's something major. As for smoking… I quit."

"You… _what_?" I said, astounded.

"I quit," he repeated as though I was dumb.

"Why?" I said.

"Because," he said. "You didn't like it."

My eyes were now locked onto his face. He quit because _I_ wanted him to?

He shook his head slightly as though we were talking about something unimportant. "I had to try to quit sooner or later," he murmured as he started to flip through the book again.

Syaoran started lecturing about some problem, but my mind couldn't comprehend his speech.

I couldn't believe it. How could Syaoran be so… laid-back about this? Unless I'm the over reacting one.

Tomoyo said that he did things for me that he would never do for anyone. What was I to him?

Was it possible that he liked me?

Do I… like him?

"Hey, stupid," he said as he hit me slightly on the forehead with a pencil. "Did you get what I said?"

"Wh-wha?" I said as I blinked. "Oh… no, I didn't… hear what you said."

"Do you know this problem?" he asked as he pointed a math problem with the tip of his forefinger.

"Oh… yeah!" I said as I tried to solve the problem out on a piece of paper. Unfortunately, I didn't get it. He saw me slowly try to write down a made up answer for the problem.

"That's wrong," he said bluntly.

"Yeah, I know," I snapped. "I'm trying…"

But I couldn't get it. I hated this one; it was some weird problem…

What was it called? You had to use…

"Idiot, you have to use the quadratic formula," he said as he moved in to sit beside me.

Oh yeah… that formula.

Then I noticed that he was sitting barely an inch away from me. He was leaning towards me and the table, and I felt the familiar warmth from his hand as he took the pencil away from me.

"You plug in the number for 'negative b' here," he said as he wrote down the solution of the problem. "Then you square root all of that."

My mind screamed at my body to become still, for I had a sudden urge to run out of the room.

"I… I see…" I said as I tried to concentrate on the problem.

"You add and subtract by five…" he continued. "And then divide all that by two, since you only had one for 'a.'"

I felt his warm sweet breath slowly trace the edges of my face. His other arm was behind somewhere; he was leaning on it while he was working on the problem.

My head felt faint and I became a little dizzy.

What's wrong with me? Why am I like this?

I can't possibly like him… can I?

"Got it?" he finished as he placed the pencil down.

"Y-yeah," I said breathlessly as I tried to focus looking at the problem.

"I finally got it through your thick-headed brain," he sighed.

"What did you say—?!" I started as I faced him. His nose was nearly touched my cheek.

We both stared at each other. My eyes widened as I saw him get closer to me.

Was he going to kiss me?

But his face passed my own as he reached for a pen on the opposite side of the table. My eyes shrunk back to its original size… maybe even smaller.

"So," he said as he pulled away from me. "What else did you not get?"

He grinned as he added, "Do you need me to cover the whole book?"

"Jerk," I said as he chuckled.

I looked at the book and my eyes unfocused a little.

Maybe I was thinking about it too much. He can't possibly like me… he _loves_ Amamiya.

He always was… and he always will.

I wonder why… I can't…

"Sakura…?" said Syaoran uncertainly. I blinked and in my shock, felt a tear roll down my cheek.

Oh no, am I crying? Why am I _always_ crying all the time? Now I'm going to look all emo and stuff…

"Ah… I'm a little tired," I lied as I quickly wiped my eyes.

He didn't buy it.

"What happened?" he said; his tone became serious. "Er, you're not mad about what I said…"

"I'm not," I said as my hands grabbed and shoved my belongings back in my backpack.

"What are you doing?" he said.

"I… I gotta go home," I replied. "I didn't get much sleep last night…"

My lies tangled into one another, fitting perfectly together. But Syaoran looked past them.

"What's wrong?" he pressured.

"It's nothing!" I said a little too loudly. He stared at me.

"I… I really need to go," I said. Another tear was nearly forming in my eye, but I quickly wiped it on my sleeve.

I heard him stand up as I opened the door.

"Hey! Sakura!" I heard him yell as I dashed downstairs.

"Miss?" said the maid, confused that I was out so early.

"Thank you for your service," I said as I quickly shoved my feet in my shoes. Syaoran had just reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Oh, but Miss—!" started the maid, but I ignored her.

I opened the door and ran outside. I was reaching towards the bus stop when I heard—

"Sakura, wait!" shouted Syaoran. He had already caught up to me.

I turned around and saw him looking at me with a tense expression on his face.

"I… I'm a little tired…" I repeated.

He walked up to me and froze when I flinched away from him.

"What…" he started.

I never did like you…

I don't like you…

I won't like you…

"I…don't know," I whispered, my voice no louder than the sound of my breathing.

My heart…

Why do I feel this kind of pain? Was it because… in the end… even if I did like him…

It would be unrequited?

I glimpsed up at him, and he stared at me with a mix of confusion and worry on his face. "What did you…?" he said.

"I said it was nothing!" I said, more loudly than before.

My eyes were forming tears again, but I managed to blink and make them dry off before they poured down my face.

"What's wrong…?" he said, his expression solemn.

How can he be so dense? I wanted to scream at him for being stupid… for being such a dumbass…

But…

His eyes looked deep into mine.

Do I seriously like him? And if I did… would I get hurt in the end?

My chest… my heart…

Why have I not realized it by now… this agonizing pain?

"It hurts…" I said. "And I honestly don't know why."

"You…" he started as he stepped towards me.

I blinked and suddenly saw his chest… himself in front of me.

"What—?" I said as I felt my body press against his and his arms wrapping around my shoulders.

"You can cry if you want." he said as he hugged me.

I won't cry. Not in front of you.

"Sakura…" he said. I felt his now hot breath on me once more.

Did he know?

He stroked my hair and slowly removed some of the strands from my face. I saw his dark brown eyes searching for me.

Then… he slowly leaned in towards me. I dared myself not to breathe.

I slowly closed my eyes as I felt his heat on my lips. Yet…

His hands suddenly shifted.

My head jerked a little as his hands pushed my face closer to him. I felt his warm cheek press against mine. He held me tighter than before, as though we had been separated for millions of years.

"I want to…" he whispered in my ear. "But I can't."

"S-Syaoran…" I said as I tried to release myself from him. His arms, however, were like steel as they clung to me.

No… don't say it…

Don't—

"I'm sorry," he said softly.

**To be continued…**

Ooh, really dramatic. But my genre _is_ Romance and Drama… Ahehehe. Anyways I hoped you enjoyed and please review. Oh yeah and please read my new story, The White Lace! It's new!


	18. Lost Words

Yay! The long anticipated Chapter 18! Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 18**

**Lost Words**

**Sakura's POV**

_I'm sorry._

I sighed as I rolled on my back on my bed and held my pillow to my face.

He knew…

He knew all along about how I was feeling…

And yet, he said sorry.

I'm not even sure about my feelings for him. Did I truly like him? Or is it just something I overlooked? What are my… true feelings for him?

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_

I rolled back to my side and grabbed my phone.

"Hello…" I said stuffily.

"Sakura," said a voice. I instantly hung up.

It was Syaoran.

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_

I looked at my phone before picking up and saw Syaoran's name. He was calling me again.

I quickly turned around and blocked the constant ringing in my ears with my pillow.

"Please… just leave me alone…" I whispered.

And then… the ringing stopped.

Suddenly the door knocked in my room.

"Come in…" I said dully and felt Toya slowly walk to my bed.

"You okay?" he said as I felt his hand softly pat the back of my head. "You look a little depressed."

"I'm fine," I lied. Toya didn't ask anymore questions.

"Well, here," he said. "It's one of your friends. I think its Tomoyo."

"Tomoyo…?" I said as I picked up the handheld phone.

"Sakura-chan?" said Tomoyo.

"Oh hey Tomoyo-chan," I said blearily. Toya left the room.

"Are you alright?" she asked in a worried tone. "You don't sound so good."

I sighed. "A lot happened," I said.

"What is it? Tell me," she said.

I took a deep breath.

"I think I _inadvertently_ told Syaoran that I liked him," I said.

There was a pause at the other line.

"Tomoyo-chan?"

"Oh… wow."

"I know."

"What did he say?"

My eyes shrunk a little. "Er… I got rejected," I said.

"No _way_!" she gasped.

"He's with Amamiya, remember?" I said dully.

"Oh… are you okay?" she said.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I lied again.

"Oh Sakura-chan… you really did like him," she sighed.

"Well… I don't know," I said. "I'm… I'm not sure that I do."

"I'm confused," she said.

I pressed my lips together and talked again.

"It's like I like him… but I don't like him," I said slowly. "As in… I'm not sure…"

"…that you really do like him," she finished. "You think it's just looks or something."

"Yeah, and I don't want to like him just because of that."

There was another long pause.

"Tomoyo-chan, don't leave me hanging here."

"Sorry," she said. "So what's going to happen now? You guys were like the closest out of all of us."

"I know," I said. "He called me just a few minutes ago too."

"Oh? What did he say?" she said.

"I… hung up on him," I said.

"Er…" she started.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "It was stupid."

"Yeek… it's going to be really awkward," she said.

"I don't know what he feels about me anymore," I said. "Maybe he hates me."

"No he doesn't," she said. "He's just feeling uncomfortable like you are."

"How would you know?" I said.

"Please Sakura-chan," she said. "I knew him longer than everyone else in this school. I was his, quote on quote, childhood friend remember? Even though he doesn't act like one…"

"Oh yeah…" I said.

"And plus," she said. "It's really hard for someone to get mad at you."

"It was easy for Meiling," I said.

"Yeah well, she hates everyone," she said shortly.

"So…" I said. "What should I do now?"

"Honestly Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo sadly. "I really don't know."

**Syaoran's POV**

The hot water drenched my face and body as I stepped into the shower. I slowly closed my eyes and let the water run through my entire body as I tried to process my thoughts.

_It hurts… and I honestly don't know why._

What do you mean, Sakura? Were you talking about…us?

My head made a thump sound as it hit the wall.

Why the hell do I… feel so bad?

I feel like I'm lying to her. Her face… her eyes… her lips…

Telling her that I couldn't be with her… what was I thinking?

"Fuck…" I murmured.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Yo, Li," said Yamazaki as I stepped into the class. "Are you okay dude?"

"I'm okay," I fibbed as I sat lazily on the table.

"Hmm… did something happen between you and Sakura-chan?" said Eriol.

"No," I lied again. "Why would you say that?"

"Well… er… I only see you upset when the situation involves her," he said. "Unless I'm wrong…"

"It's nothing," I sighed as I placed my head on the table. "I'm just tired."

"Good morning, Tomoyo," said Eriol as she walked inside the class. Daidouji smiled at him back.

"Good morning," she said. She smiled at me as well… yet her expression was a little off.

It wasn't one of those usual smiles…

It was…

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" said Mihara. I looked up and saw Sakura stare at me for a moment. And then she smiled at everyone and said 'good morning.'

She sat on her seat, which was right front of my own.

"Um… Sakura…" I said slowly. She turned around and smiled at me.

"Oh, hey Li," she said. Then she turned back to her desk.

Huh…? Li?

"You're more chipper than usual," said Eriol as he gave her a pleasant smile.

"Well, I woke up early today," said Sakura; her voice had a smile in it.

"…"

"So uh, did Li-kun teach you well on your math?" said Daidouji, who looked at me. It seemed like she knew something was going on as well.

"Yeah, he was great," said Sakura. "He taught me a lot of stuff; I'm so glad that he helped me."

She turned to face me. "Oh, I'm sorry Li," she said. "I forgot to thank you."

Huh…

"It's… no problem," I said slowly. She showed me her smile. I couldn't tell if it was a fake one or not.

Of what I said yesterday… did she forget all about it?

What I said to her…

It was cruel.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Bye, Sakura-chan!" said Daidouji as the whole group walked out of the gate.

Eriol gave me a sympathetic smile. "Good luck," he whispered as he and Yamazaki went with Yanagisawa, Sasaki, Mihara, and Daidouji.

Good luck my ass.

Sakura began to walk out of the parking lot and I slowly followed her.

"Hey, Sakura," I said. "Do you need a ride?"

"Oh, I'm good," she said as she turned to me. "I need to go somewhere anyway."

"Let me take you—" I started.

"No," she said firmly. "I'm… alright. Thanks anyway."

"Look, if it's about yesterday…"

"I'm fine," she said. She sounded almost angry.

She relaxed and said, "I'm… I don't think I need a ride from you anymore."

"…"

"Sakura… I know you're mad at me," I said. "But I—"

"Li…" she said. "Please… please don't call me Sakura anymore."

**Sakura's POV**

Syaoran stared at me. The look in his eyes was far beyond belief. He's going to get mad again…

"I'm sorry Li," I said. "But… this is the best way."

"What 'best way?'" he said, the anger in his voice slowly rising. "It was because of what I said wasn't it? If you're mad at me, then just tell me!"

"I'm not mad at you," I said calmly.

Stay calm. Act like nothing's wrong…

"Then why do I have to stop calling you, 'Sakura'?" he said. "You're the one who wanted to drop the honorifics in the first place—"

"And you're the one who didn't want to drop them," I said. My voice started to break in anger. "I'm giving you you're way. Aren't you happy?"

"No, I'm not happy," he said stubbornly. "I want things the way they were!"

Then I glared at him. That idiot…

"Way they were…" I repeated slowly. He never got what I wanted… what he was saying to me…

"You just don't get it do you Li?" I said. "It wasn't about yesterday. It's about what you're doing now!"

"What am I doing?!" he said. "Tell me what I did wrong to piss you off!"

"Why should I tell you?!" I said, my voice no longer calm "You're never going to learn if I just tell you—!"

"I can't read your fucking mind Sakura—!" he said.

"Stop calling me Sakura!" I snapped.

"Sakura! Sakura! Sakura!" he snapped back.

Why is he being such an ass? Why can't he just leave me alone?

"Just… just leave me alone!" I said as I tried to run away. I felt his iron grip grab my arm and turn me back around to him.

"I'm not leaving you," he said. "Not until I find out why you're mad at me."

"Let go, you jerk!" I said sharply. My temper flared when the grip of his hand tightened on my arm.

"Let—go—!" I cried.

"Why can't things be like the way they were?" he demanded. "You said yourself that you wanted me as your friend… you were happy then."

My eyes widened.

Yes… he was right. Back then, I only… wanted him as my friend, and nothing more. We could never be… anything closer. Was it just a dying hope that I had? It was my entire fault. He didn't know…

But looking at him… makes me…

"Li…" I said, my lip trembling. "Just please… leave me alone."

He didn't let go, but his grip weakened. I forcefully pulled away from him and ran away.

Crap that was so stupid…

Why did I… act so mean to him? He probably didn't know what was going on… why I was mad…

Sigh…

What in the world is going on with me?

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

I didn't talk to Syaoran at all the next day. It was like we were ignoring each other.

Though one time…

I tripped on a pencil and was going to fall when I hit him.

"Oh… sorry," I said as I straightened up.

"No problem," he said. He didn't even glance at me.

I sighed as I sat down on my desk. Tomoyo sat beside me.

"Sakura-chan… it's not going to get any better," she said. "If you keep doing this…"

I gave her a half smile.

"But this… is the best way," I whispered quietly. She looked at me sadly.

"Okay class," said Terada as he came in class. Everyone sat back down on their desks. I heard Syaoran sit behind me, but I restrained myself to not look at him.

"Today, I want you to pair up with someone and make a collage about the two novels that we studied just last week," said Terada. "Your partner is the one sitting on your row, either in front or behind you. Get to know your partner, and have it done by tomorrow."

I froze. Oh no…

Syaroan was the last one who sat on our row… and I sat in front of him…

Talk about luck…

As the students walked around with their partners, Syaoran and I were the only ones who didn't move.

Damn, I felt so stupid, just sitting there. I bet Syaoran's asleep or something.

The bell finally rang and the students chatted amongst themselves about their projects. I quickly packed up my stuff and headed out of the door without knowing if he was actually asleep or not.

My pace slowed down as I reached the parking lot.

Crap… I guess I have to do the project myself. But it's so much work…

"Sakura," said a voice that made me nearly jump. I quickly turned around and saw Syaoran walk up to me. I forced myself to smile.

"Oh, hi Li," I said as I tried to back away. "Listen, you don't need to worry about the project. I'm going to work on it by myself—"

He suddenly grabbed my arm.

"Eh?" I said as he looked at me sternly.

"I'll take you home," he said as he began to pull me toward his car.

"Hey—let go of me!" I said; my fake happiness faded. No, not this again…

I don't want to be hurt by you…

"No," he said. "I'm not letting you go."

"Let…!"

"Stop it, Sakura!" he said, his voice just barely the same as his yell. My voice stopped from his response. Was he mad?

"I don't know what's going on between us," he said. "And I don't know how I feel about you right now…"

I flinched.

"But I know for sure…" he said. "You're a very important person to me."

I stared at him.

"What…?" I started.

"Sakura… I don't want _this_…" he said softly. "…what's happening right now. I want, at the very least… to be your friend."

"Li…" I said.

Yes… a friend. That was what… I wanted too.

"And _stop _calling me that," he said, annoyed. "Or I'm going to kill you."

"Syaoran," I said.

"Good girl," he said as he grinned.

"I'm… I'm sorry," I said. I tried not to cry.

"It's okay," he said. "So about the project…"

"Oh… yeah…" I said slowly.

"We're working on it together," he said stubbornly.

"Okay, okay…" I sighed. We walked together to his car.

**Syaoran's POV**

Sakura seemed to smile more now.

We decided to work the project at her house, since my mom was doing a meeting at my house.

"Hey, do you have the glue stick?" she said.

"Yeah… it's right…" I started. I watched her take out the pink poster from her drawer.

"Pink…?" I said dully.

"Yeah, isn't it a cute color?" said Sakura as she placed the poster on the floor. "It has a nice feeling to it when you see it."

"Uh… I guess…?" I said as I watched her take out a bag full of magazines.

"You can pick the second poster's color then," she said. I looked through the drawer and took out a green poster.

"Fine," I said as I placed my poster on the ground as well.

"Whoa, this is cool," said Sakura as she was reading an article. "Piffle Princess is making a new toy…"

"Are you a child?" I said. She glared at me.

"No," she said. "I thought it looked interesting."

"Uh-huh," I said sarcastically, and she uttered a small, "Hmph!"

**Sakura's POV**

We finished quicker than I thought. And it was pretty fun, making the posters with him…as a friend.

I think this was better… than just ignoring him all the time.

At least for now, we're both happy.

"Thanks, Syaoran," I said as I wrapped up the posters and tied them with a rubber band. "We finished it fast."

"Yeah…" he said.

I smiled at him and he smirked.

"So… I guess I'll see you tomorrow, right?" he said as he patted my head.

"Er… yeah," I said as I patted his head too.

We both went outside and I waited for him to get into his car.

"Bye," I said as he started the engine. He grinned at me and nodded. Then his car drove away.

I went back inside the house and started to put the stationary back in Toya's closet. As I was putting the bag of crayons away, I saw a red box nearly covered by a few clothes.

Huh? I never saw that before. Hmm… maybe it's Toya's old high school stuff…

I opened the box and saw a few pieces of paper and…

"Eh?" I said as I picked up a very old envelope. I guess it was supposed to be a yellow color, but most of it seemed faded.

A few numbers of paper fell to the floor. I picked up the first two. It was my parent's will… bequests, legacies…

I guess that's why we're still living in a house.

I looked back inside the envelope and found two other pieces of paper, which were death certificates. I stared at them.

All the papers dropped to the floor before I fell on my knees.

No… way…

I heard the front door open and close, and Toya's voice, calling for me. Then the sound of his footsteps approached to his room, and as he opened the door, he looked at me with a shocked expression on his face.

"S-Sakura…?!" he said. "What are you…?"

"Toya!" I cried out. "Tell me that these are all fake!"

"I…" he started.

It couldn't be true. It just couldn't be…

I can never believe it…

Please Toya… please tell me…

That these are not real… because if they are…

I don't know what I'll do.

_Name of deceased: Fujitaka Kinomoto _

_Usual residence: Tokyo, Japan_

…

_Cause of death: Crushed chest and abdomen from __**car crash**_

_Name of deceased: Nadeshiko Amamiya Kinomoto_

_Usual residence: Tokyo, Japan_

…

_Cause of death: __Intracranial injury, crushed abdomen from __**car crash**__. Was previously diagnosed for pneumonia._

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"You told me… that Mom and Dad died from sickness," I said. Toya and I were both sitting on the couch in the living room.

"Yes… I did," he said slowly.

"Why did you lie to me…?" I said. "Why didn't you just… tell me that they died from a car crash?"

"Sakura… you knew about him don't you?" he said.

"Who…?" I started.

"That Li Syaoran," he said. "He told you everything, didn't he?"

"No—I—" I started.

"If he didn't tell you before, you wouldn't have been as shocked as you are now," he said.

That's right…

Because Syaoran told me that Amamiya died in a car accident…

"I…" I said.

"That Syaoran kid," said Toya. "What else did he tell you?"

"Are you saying that Syaoran's involved in this?" I said. "He was involved in the car accident?"

He didn't reply.

"The certificate said it happened seven years ago," I continued. "How come I don't remember it?"

"Because you were in it," he said quietly. I felt a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"_What_?" I said.

"I was in it too," he said. He stood up and slowly started to take off his shirt.

"I guess it was no point in hiding it from you now," he said. "But I just wanted to protect you."

"Toya, what are you…?" I started. He turned around so that his back faced me. I saw, in horror, the lines of the hideous scars that ran from the base of his neck, all the way down his back.

"Toya…?" I said.

"These scars… I got them from the accident," he said as he put his shirt back on. He sat next to me and sighed.

"What… happened?" I gasped.

"Seven years ago, we lived in this same house," said Toya. "But Mom caught pneumonia, and Dad was told that the best doctors to treat it were at Osaka. We were only going to stay there for a little while, until Mom was cured. But… we went to a car accident before we actually even got there."

He paused to look at me, and he read my bemused expression. However, he went on.

"Mom and Dad were on the verge of dying, you suffered a near fatal brain injury, and I got these scars…" he said solemnly. "Their last wish was that I were to protect you, and for you to be happy."

He looked away from me, for I was crying.

"The doctors told me that you were going to die, unless they did surgery on you," he continued. "The risk was that you would lose all your memories, but I was certain that at the very least, you wouldn't have to remember the accident…"

"So you had to lie to me…" I said. He hugged me.

"Sakura… I'm sorry," he said. I slowly nodded, unable to speak.

He looked away again for a brief second, and then looked back at me.

"You need some sleep," he said. "It's getting late."

I looked at the time; it was nearly twelve and I nodded again. It was the least I could do for him. Of all the pain of loss, he was suffering it alone…

But… what about Syaoran? Was he involved?

It seemed to fit all together…

The next thing I knew, I was in bed, my eyes closed. What Toya said… what Syaoran said…

Yes… it all fits…

And my mother's maiden name was Amamiya.

But that would make me…

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Good morning, Sakura-chan!" said Tomoyo as she popped next to me. We were both walking to our first period class.

"Oh… hey," I said. She looked at me with a worried face.

"Are you alright?" she said. "Did something happen…?"

"No…" I said as I saw her point at Syaoran. "Not… him…"

"What happened?" she said. I saw Syaroan approach us.

"Hey… Sakura," he said. "What's wrong? You look like you're going to puke."

"Oh… I'm…" I started.

"Hey, guys," said Yamazaki, who had just ran to us and was out of breath. "Did you guys hear? There was an accident at the student parking lot…!"

"What…?" said Syaoran. We followed Yamazaki to the parking lot, and sure enough, there were two cars that were both nearly demolished. Many people have already gathered around the scene.

"Oh no… are they okay?" said Tomoyo through the screams and gasps. I saw Syaoran look at the scene uneasily.

"I think so, one got seriously injured—look there's the ambulance," said Yamazaki.

The crew arrived, carrying a wounded student, whose face was bloody. I watched everything, wide eyed.

The cars… the blood…

"Sakura…?" said Syaoran uncertainly as he watched me go rigid.

_Sakura…!_

_Sakura…!_

"No…" I moaned.

_Toya!_

_Sakura, don't put her arm out of the window!_

_Oh, Toya! Look, it's Syaoran!_

_Sakura—what—?!_

_BAM._

_AHHHHHH!_

_SAKURA!_

I suddenly gave out a huge scream and fell to the ground, clutching my head.

"S-Sakura-chan?!" said Tomoyo in a panicked voice. I felt Syaoran next to me.

"Sakura?!" he said; he had alarm in his voice as well.

I soon heard other people calling my name… but I couldn't hear them. I only had one thing in my mind…

The accident… everything…

I had remembered it all.

**To be continued…**

Sakura's past is revealed! What's going to happen next?! Oh yeah, and I'd like to say, "Expect the unexpected." Seriously. Well, updates coming soon, so be on the lookout! Thanks for reading and review if you please! Check out my profile for any new updates; I usually post "blogs" for those who want to check up how I'm doing on the chapters. Also, please try my new story, _The Last Nagori._

Special shout out to **joe joe **and **matt matt**! Yeah, I heard a lot about you guys from my sister. She says you are both really funny and nice. I hope to see you guys when you get back from Korea (I hope you're enjoying it there too!).


	19. The Long Haired Girl

Hey everyone! So sorry for the lateness, but I had a busy schedule and stuff. Enjoy!

**Chapter 19**

**The Long Haired Girl**

**Syaoran's POV**

"How… how is she?" I said slowly. I stared at Sakura's limp body on the bed.

"She's going to be fine," said the doctor, who stood at the opposite side of the bed. "It must have been the summer heat; she just fainted."

"Fainted…" I repeated.

"Are you in any relation to this girl?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm… a close friend," I said. I said the last part very slowly.

"Okay then," he said. "Well, can you please wait outside—?"

"Can I stay with her for a while?" I said. "Just for a couple of minutes."

"Oh… alright," he said. He soon went out of the room, leaving me and Sakura alone.

I brought up a chair and sat next to her. I touched her hands; they were ice cold. I wrapped them around my own.

"Sakura…" I whispered. "What the hell happened?"

**Sakura's POV**

Everything was dark… pitch black. Was I unconscious? That's right… I fainted, didn't I?

Syaoran…

I need to tell him. I need to tell him that I… remember everything.

How could I be so dense? Even after living nearly seven years without any memory of anything, I didn't even question much about Mom and Dad's deaths… or…

Was it because… I didn't want to remember? Yes… all the blood… the glass… the screams. I hated it all.

And I wanted all of it… to disappear from my memory…

What a cruel thing to do… to even forget the one person who was all alone after that terrible day.

Syaoran…

_Sakura! Sakura!_

Eh…? Who's calling me?

_Sakura, open your eyes!_

Syaoran…?

A piercing light entered through the darkness. My eyes were instinctively opening…

I gave a small moan as my eyes opened more. Ah… I'm in the… hospital? So I… did faint. How embarrassing.

My eyes widened as I saw the person sitting next to me, asleep. It was Syaoran.

He was clutching my right hand (he was sitting at my right) and his face was buried in the side of my bed.

With my left hand slightly shaking, I slowly stroked his hair.

Ah… Syaoran, it really is you.

His hand that held mine suddenly clenched as he stirred. I quickly placed my left hand back at my side.

"Ugh… Sakura?" he said as his head slowly rose.

"Oh… Syaoran," I said. "Um…"

"You're okay," he said, his voice hinting relief.

"Yeah… I'm okay now!" I said as I noticed that his hand still holding mine.

He grinned at me. "I'm glad," he said. I blushed.

"Were you… worried about me?" I asked timidly.

"No," he said shortly. "But what was I supposed to do when you just fainted right next to me?"

I glared at him. "Jerk—!" I started.

He suddenly placed his hand on the top of my head and pushed my forehead to his.

"I was just kidding," he chuckled.

Somehow, though annoyed by his stupid joke, I felt… happy.

"Syaoran…" I whispered. "I need to tell you something."

"What's up?" he said as he sat back.

"It's about the accident—" I started.

"Alright young man," said a nurse as she appeared beside me. "You've stayed here longer than when you were supposed to. She needs her _rest_."

"Er, sorry lady," he said as he stood up.

"Wait…!" I started.

"Miss, please lie back down."

"But—!"

"Sakura," said Syaoran as he grinned at me. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay? You can tell me then."

"Syaoran…" I said slowly.

He waved with his back turned to me as he walked out of the door. The nurse forced me to lie back on the bed.

I turned around so that I faced the wall. I guess I'll just tell Syaoran… tomorrow.

**Syaoran's POV**

Hmm, I wonder what Sakura has to tell me?

_Ring! Ring!_

I picked up my cell phone and saw that my mother was calling me. I was going to ignore it, but…

"Hello," I said as I flipped it open.

"Syaoran… I need you to come home right away," said my mother.

"I can't right now," I said. "I need to—"

"It's about your father."

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

I walked inside the house as the maid took my shoes. My mother was sitting on the couch of the living room, drinking tea.

I sat on the couch opposite of her.

"Ah, Syaoran, you actually came," said Yelan as she placed her tea cup down. Her face looked a little solemn.

"Yeah, so what did you mean about Dad?" I said. "He died a long time ago…"

"Yes, I know," she said. "But it is about his company."

"His company…?" I said puzzled. "What do you mean…?"

She looked at me, her face turning more somber.

"Your uncle has passed away."

I stared at her, wide eyed.

**Sakura's POV**

"Sakura-chan!" cried Chiharu as she hugged me. "Are you alright?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said as I patted her on the back. "It was just the summer heat…"

"Don't worry Chiharu-chan," said Tomoyo. "Sakura-chan is tough!"

"Yeah, haha, thanks Tomoyo-chan," I said. She smiled.

"I bet Toya got really worried," she said.

"Toya was so annoying when I got home," I said. "He sounded as if I just recovered from surgery…"

Everyone laughed. Except…

I looked around. "Hey guys," I said. "Have you seen Syaoran?"

Chiharu shook her head. "Oh, I think I saw Li-kun outside," said Rika. "I think he's going to ditch again…"

"Eh?" I said.

"Sakura-chan you know where he is, don't you?" asked Tomoyo suddenly.

"No I…" I started. Then I stared at her. She nodded and beamed.

"Oh… be right back guys!" I said as I ran out of the class.

"S-Sakura-chan?" I heard Naoko call.

How could I forget? Syaoran always hangs out here…

Near that cherry blossom tree…

And sure enough, I saw him. He was sitting on the grass, on the base of the tree. Just like before…

But something didn't look right… especially because… he was smoking…

"Syaoran!" I said as I ran up to him.

He looked up at me, and he was not surprised.

"Hey," he said as a thin line of smoke spewed from his mouth. I sat next to him.

"I thought… you quit?" I said slowly. He took one last draft and crushed the remains on his shoe.

"Yeah… but I just took one for old time's sake," he said. Something was wrong with his voice.

"Hey… are you alright?" I asked.

"Yeah…. I'm fine," he replied.

"Did… something happen?"

His face shifted a little, but he straightened it right after.

"Why do you think that?" he said finally.

"Well… you're smoking," I said. "That's one thing."

"It's hard to quit you know," he said irritably. "Give me a break."

"And…" I continued as I ignored his last comment. "You sound… stressed."

He sighed, and slowly placed a hand on my head. I stared at him.

"You're feeling better right?" he said as his hand went down to my cheek. "That's good."

"Syaoran…?" I started. Is he trying to change the subject?

"Do you need something?" he said. "I'm going to give you a ride, if that was what you were wondering."

"Oh, no…" I said. "Actually, I've been meaning to tell you something…"

That's right… I nearly forgot. I have to tell him… about the accident.

"What is it?" he said.

"Syaoran… I…" I started.

"Hey Li!" shouted Yamazaki as he appeared. Eriol came behind, smiling.

"Yo," said Syaoran, but his eyes were still fixed on me.

"Where were you man?" said Yamazaki. "Lunch was boring without you!"

"You have Eriol," said Syaoran dully, still staring at me.

"Yeah, well he was hanging out with Daidouji," said Yamazaki as he glared at Eriol. Eriol just continued to smile.

"Eh…" I said.

"Sorry Kinomoto," said Yamazaki as he grabbed Syaoran by the neck. "But can we borrow Li? We need his car."

"For what?" said Syaoran as he tried to push Yamazaki away. "You guys have a car."

"Eh, too lazy to drive," said Eriol as Yamazaki started to drag Syaoran away.

"Lazy mother—" started Syaoran.

"I'm sorry Sakura-chan," interrupted Eriol sincerely.

"Eh, it's okay," I said. I still have time…

"Thanks! We owe you Kinomoto!" said Yamazaki.

"Sakura, I'll talk to you after school!" yelled Syaoran as Yamazaki took him away with Eriol walking lazily after. A couple seconds later, I saw Rika run towards me.

"Hi Sakura-chan!" she said.

"Oh, Rika-chan?" I said. "What's up?"

Naoko, Chiharu, and Tomoyo came up right behind her.

"I forgot to mention about inviting you to a birthday party," said Chiharu as she gave me a card.

"Birthday party?" I said.

"Yeah, it's Takashi's," said Chiharu. "It's only going to be a few people. We're going to a restaurant, karaoke, and all that other fun stuff."

"No scary movie right?" I said timidly.

"Don't worry, we're not even going to the movies," said Rika. "Even though Naoko-chan wanted to…"

"But karaoke? I can't even sing…" I said truthfully.

"No worries Sakura-chan," said Naoko. "It's just for fun. You might not have to."

"Okay…" I said.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Unfortunately for me, I didn't get to tell Syaoran (yet again) because Tomoyo took all of us in her limousine. And I didn't want to tell him in front of everyone…

At least it was a little fun. Everyone was talking and in Yamazaki's case, shouting.

"Yeah! Karaoke!" said Yamazaki.

He, Tomoyo, Naoko, Eriol, Chiharu, Syaoran, and I went to a karaoke box together. Everyone except Chiharu and Yamazaki sat down on the couches.

"This is going to be so much fun!" said Chiharu.

"Oh boy, she's psyched," said Naoko. So was Yamazaki.

"Bring in the booze!" he shouted through the phone.

"Wha? We're not even legal!" I said.

"C'mon Kinomoto! It's not going to be that much anyway," he said brightly.

"Well…" I said.

"Just let him," sighed Eriol. "It's his party anyway."

"Me first!" said Chiharu as she grabbed the microphone. "I'm going to sing my favorite song!"

Syaoran sat down next to me at the corner… the "no way in hell I'm singing" corner.

I've never been to a karaoke box before… but it seems fun.

Tomoyo smiled as she pressed a button on the machine. A song started playing and Chiharu took a deep breath.

(A/N: The following song is titled, "Tooi Kono Machi de," which is the ending theme of the first Cardcaptor movie.)

"_Daisuki datta ano uta…"  
__I love that song…_

"_Furui tape no naka…"  
__On that old tape…_

Chiharu sings pretty well. Though she sounded like she's been here millions of times… so I guess I had to expect that.

"_Chiisana kizu iro aseta taitoru nijinda yoake…"  
__Small scratches, a faded title, a blurry dawn…_

I felt Syaoran move next to me.

"Hey…" he said in a low voice. He placed his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to him, so that I would hear him through Chiharu's singing.

"What did you want to tell me?" he said.

"Not here…" I said as I tried to push him away.

"Why?" he said as he pulled me in again.

"It's a secret," I whispered. He sighed.

"After this?" he said quietly. I nodded. Then he stopped pulling me, but left his arm hanging around me.

"_Lalalala, utaou sora o miagete…"  
__Lalalala, I will sing my song with my face towards the sky…_

Suddenly Yamazaki joined in.

"_LALALALA! IT'S MY LIFE ARUITE YUKOU!" _he screamed. (_LALALALA! IT'S MY LIFE I WILL WALK ON!)_

He was really hyper… too hyper.

And…Chiharu got a little pissed.

"Yamazaki, you idiot!" she snapped as she hit his head with her microphone.

But in the end, they sang together anyway.

"_Watashi no chikara de susumu hate shinai kono michi o…"  
__Using my strength to go forward on this endless road…_

Everyone (except Syaoran) clapped when the song was over and Yamazaki hugged Chiharu as they went down the platform.

"Whose next?" asked Rika.

Yamazaki instantly pointed to Tomoyo.

"Oh, me?" said Tomoyo mildly.

"Yup!" said Chiharu. "Go Tomoyo-chan!"

"Wasn't Tomoyo lead sing of the choir group?" I asked.

"Yeah, but it doesn't hurt to hear her angelic voice again," laughed Rika.

Tomoyo smiled as she pressed the button again and raised the microphone slightly towards her lips.

"Okay, well this is my favorite song too," she said as she smiled. The intro played… and even with the knowledge of her being in the choir, I was still amazed by her voice.

(A/N: This song is titled, "Koko Ni Kite," which was used as an insert song of the second Cardcaptor Sakura movie. This song is actually sung by the original Tomoyo in the movie.)

"_Hitomi o tojite, kokoro no naka o mitsumeteru…"  
__Closing my eyes, I look deep inside my heart…_

"_Dare no matsu no…?"  
__Who are you waiting for…?_

She was looking at Eriol, who was smiling right back.

"_Chiheisen no mukou kara __kikoete kuru koe o kiiteiru…__"  
__I am listening to the voice that I can hear from across the horizon…_

"_Koko ni kite…"  
__Come here…_

When she was done, Yamazaki whistled as everyone (except Syaoran) clapped again.

"Beautiful…" said Naoko as she wiped her eyes.

"Very," said Rika as she smiled at Tomoyo. Eriol gave Tomoyo a drink as they were brought in.

"Let's see… whose next?" said Chiharu. She looked at Syaoran evilly and he shot her a look that said, "Don't even say my name."

Yamazaki, however, didn't see his glare.

"Li-kun! Go!" he said. He was starting to get tipsy from the drinks.

"Do you wanna die?" said Syaoran angrily as he was going to punch him.

"Oh, c'mon Li," said Eriol. "It's just one song. You're not that bad anyway."

"Shut up," said Syaoran. "I hate singing."

"I want to hear you sing," I said. He flinched.

"Just go," said Yamazaki impatiently. "You're wasting our money here."

"FINE!" snapped Syaoran as he grabbed the microphone. He slammed his fist on the button and the intro played.

Everyone cheered, but Syaoran still frowned.

(A/N: Now this song is titled, "Ki Ni Naru Aistu," a song that was actually sung by the real Syaoran's Japanese voice actress in the "Character Songbook" collection.)

"_Doko made mo tsuzuku aoi sora massugu miagate…"  
__I look up straight at the endless blue sky…"_

"_Fukinukeru kaze o suikonde saka o kaketeku…"  
__I breathe in the passing breeze and run the hill…_

"Wow…" I said softly.

Syaoran… Syaoran is really good!

"Woot!" said Yamazaki as Eriol whistled. "Go my Li-kun!"

"_Ki ni naru aistu, fushigi na aistu, koko de jitto shite irarenai…"  
__This girl in my mind, this mysterious girl, I can't stand quiet…_

I stared at him. He was looking at me intently as he sang.

Syaoran…?

"_Ki ni naru yokan, fushigi na yokan, yume de mita you na munasawagi…"  
__This anxious feeling, this mysterious feeling, uneasiness that's seen in a dream…_

"_Yokan dekinai mainichi massugu mitsumete…"  
__I can't have this uneasiness everyday, so I stare straight ahead…_

When the song was over, both Yamazaki and Eriol clapped loudly.

Syaoran sat back down next to me.

"This is stupid," he snapped at Yamazaki. "You said that I didn't have to sing."

"Well, you know," said Yamazaki as he got redder on the face. "We didn't hang out like this in a while. This is Kinomoto's first time too!"

I looked at Syaoran who turned away.

"Whatever…" he grumbled.

"Here, Kinomoto," said Yamazaki as he handed me a cup filled with… something. My eyes on Syaoran finally went to the cup.

"What's this?" I said.

"Soda," he replied automatically.

"Liar," I said sharply.

"Oh, just a sip Kinomoto," he said pleadingly. "Look, Syaoran's drinking too!"

"EH?" I said as I turned. Syaoran was drinking the stuff from another cup.

"STOP!" I screeched as I slapped his hand.

"What?" he said. "I was thirsty."

He was normal.

"Huh? Yamazaki… isn't this…?" I started.

"Shouchu?" said Yamazaki as he began to drink a bottle. "Oh, and this is sake…"

(A/N: Shouchu is like the Korean soju. It's basically stronger than wine or sake.)

"Syaoran, how do you feel?" I said nervously.

"I feel fine," said Syaoran.

Huh…?

"Oh…" I said. If Syaoran's okay… then I guess that means I can drink it.

I drank the stuff and grimaced. It was freaking strong… alcohol. No wonder, it smelled really bad…

How can Syaoran not be drunk? Maybe he's just drinking water.

"Can I drink that?" I said as I looked at his cup.

"Here," said Syaoran as he gave it to me. I drank from it.

It's the same stuff…

How could Syaoran be okay?

Ah… my head…

I'm getting dizzy…

"Syaoran…" I said slowly. "Is this… sake…?"

"I dunno," said Syaoran as he looked at the cup. "It tastes like it…"

Tastes like it?

"My turn to sing…!" slurred Naoko. She was drunk too.

Everyone seemed drunk… except Syaoran, Tomoyo, Rika, and Eriol.

"Yay! Another song!" said Yamazaki drunkenly.

My eyes started to become heavy.

"Syaoran… ah…" I moaned as I felt my head slide down to his shoulder.

This party turned out for the worst.

**Syaoran's POV**

"I'll take these guys home," said Eriol as he indicated Mihara and Yamazaki who were already asleep on the seats. Daidouji had just taken us to the school parking lot, where Eriol's car and my car were.

"I'll take Naoko-chan and Rika-chan home," said Tomoyo. Both Yanagisawa and Sasaki waited patiently in the limo, but I think Yanagisawa passed out.

"I'll… take Sakura home I guess," I said.

"See you guys tomorrow then," said Daidouji.

I nodded and carried the unconscious Sakura on my back to my car.

"Syaoran…?" she said drowsily.

"Yeah?" I said as buckled her in the seat.

"I'm hungry," she said. Shit, she's still drunk.

"I'll get you something to eat," I said. "Just go back to sleep."

"Okay," she giggled.

"Syaoran…" said a voice. I turned and saw Eriol.

"What?" I said.

"Did something happen?" he said. "You didn't get drunk today."

"So?" I said irritably. "Was I supposed to?"

"You drank five cupfuls of sake and souchu," said Eriol. "And usually it takes you one teaspoon of alcohol to get you messed."

"…"

"You don't get drunk if something bad happened."

"It's nothing," I lied. "I'm just a little stressed."

_Did… something happen?_

Sakura… asked me that too.

"I'll get through it," I said. "Don't worry about me."

Eriol grinned. "Sure thing," he said and he walked back to his car.

I sighed as I watched everyone else drive away, leaving me and Sakura alone.

Oh great, now I have to baby-sit a drunk person. I got in the car and drove to the nearest fast food place.

Sakura automatically woke up when we got there and I ordered a to-go menu. I drove to a park and we both sat on a bench to eat the food. The weather wasn't that cold, and I needed some fresh air.

"Yummy!" said Sakura as she munched on her burger.

"Happy?" I said grumpily.

She patted her stomach when she was done.

"Good food," she said. "Thanks Syaoran…"

"Uh yeah… great," I said.

She smiled at me. "Syaoran…" she said as she raised her finger and poked me on the chest. "I have to tell you something."

"Okay," I said as I grabbed her finger and placed it next to her.

She giggled again. "I have to tell you something," she repeated.

"Yeah, okay," I said impatiently. "Tell me."

"It's a secret."

"Uh huh."

"And I can't tell you."

"…"

"But I will," she said as she smiled again. "If you keep it a secret too."

"Okay I will," I said. "Spill it."

"It's about the accident."

I stared at her.

"What…?" I said.

"I… I was in it," she said. "I remember you… and I was in the car…"

She looked at me.

"You were shouting my name…" she said.

"How…?" I said.

"Syaoran…" she said. "I'm Amamiya."

There was a brief silence.

"Sakura…" I said finally.

"Amamiya," she said.

"You're… not Amamiya," I said.

"I am," she said.

"You're not."

"I am!"

She looked angry. "Why won't you believe me!" she snapped. "I was in the accident! I was there!"

Then she suddenly smiled.

"I'm Amamiya," she repeated happily.

"I think the sake got you hard," I said as I tried to grab her arm. "Let's go home."

"No!" she said as she pulled away. "I'm not going home, unless you say I'm Amamiya."

"You're not Amamiya, Sakura," I said calmly. "Amamiya died."

"No! She's me! I'm her!" she said angrily. "Believe me!"

"I'm sorry…" I said.

SLAP.

Her cold hand had just hit me at the side of my face and I felt a painful stinging sensation. She's drunk… she can't control herself… but deep down inside…

She's in pain.

I slowly looked back at her, only to see her face in tears.

"Why can't you believe me…?" she sobbed. "I'm… I really am Amamiya…!"

She can't be Amamiya.

It was impossible…

Because…

"Sakura…" I said slowly.

"Please… please believe me…!" she cried. "I…"

Then she fainted.

I held her in my arms as I looked up at the sky.

"Sakura… I'm sorry," I whispered. "Even though you're not Amamiya… you and I…"

I clenched my teeth as I looked back down at her face and wiped her tears. Then I tightened my grip on her and carried her back to the car. It was getting late.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Fifteen minutes later, I was at Sakura's house.

"Sakura?!" said Tsukishiro as he opened the door.

"She was exhausted," I said as I carried her inside the house.

"Thank you for bringing her home," he said.

"No problem…"

"You…" said a familiar voice. I turned and saw Toya, who was not surprised to see me.

"Toya…" I said slowly.

"We need to talk," he said. Tsukishiro carried Sakura upstairs while Toya and I both sat down on the living room couches.

"So I guess you know by now," said Toya. "About Sakura."

"I didn't know," I said. "But since I saw you…"

"Truthfully, I wanted Sakura to get away from you," he interrupted. "Because if she met you, she'd probably remember the accident. You were the last thing she saw before she lost her memories…"

I looked down at the carpet.

"But she didn't remember because of you," he continued. "She remembered because she saw our parent's death records… and because I finally told her."

"So then…?" I started.

"Along with me, Sakura survived the accident," he said. "This Sakura…. is the one you knew eight years ago."

There was a brief silence. And then...

"She doesn't remember everything," I said slowly. "She thinks she's Amamiya."

Toya looked a little surprised. "Kaou?" he said. I nodded.

He sighed. "She'll remember soon," he said. "I didn't show her the picture yet."

He indicated upstairs. I remained silent.

"You were with Sakura at our parent's graves," he said. "Were you paying your respects to Kaou too?"

"Yeah…" I said. "But for Sakura… I almost didn't recognize her. She used to have long hair."

Toya looked at me gravely.

"You knew… that I didn't like you back then," he said. "Because I didn't trust guys very well…but when I started to see you more because you hung out with Sakura… I began to trust you."

"…"

"I guess what I'm try to say is…" he said. "Thank you for taking care of her, even though she didn't remember you."

He gave me a half smile. A smile of respect.

"You're going to watch over her for me right?" he said.

"Yeah… about that…" I started.

**Sakura's POV**

Uwah… my head…

I got drunk… and I passed out…

Ah… I have a huge headache…

I least I didn't drink _that _much.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw the familiar wallpaper of my bedroom.

Eh… I'm home. Did Syaoran take me home?

I slowly got out of bed and saw the clock. It was seven in the morning. I quickly got dressed for school and walked out of the room.

"Toya…?" I called as I went downstairs. I heard the sound of eggs frying and the smell of soup.

"Hey monster," said Toya. "You slept like a log."

I was going to punch him, but I wanted to ask him—

"Did Syaoran take me home?" I said.

"Yeah… he did," he said. "Are you hungry? I made some breakfast."

"Thanks," I said as I sat down on the kitchen table.

He gave me a bowl of rice and egg. As I started eating, I saw him walk to his room and come back shortly after holding a small picture.

"Sakura… I need to tell you something," he said. He gave me the picture and I stared at it.

It was the same picture I saw in Syaoran's room. The one that was him, Amamiya, and Tomoyo.

"Hey this picture…" I started.

"You saw this before?" he asked, perplexed.

"Yeah… isn't this the picture with Syaoran, Amamiya, and Tomoyo?" I said. It was the same picture… exactly the same. But how come Toya has it?

"Tomoyo?" said Toya as he pointed to the girl with long hair. "Sakura, that's you, eight years ago."

A piece of egg fell from my mouth.

"What?!" I said. "How…?!"

"You used to have long hair, but it got shaved because of your surgery," he said.

"Are you saying…?" I started.

"Sakura… that girl…" he said as he pointed to the face of Amamiya. "Her name is Amamiya Kaou. She died eight years ago, the same day Mom and Dad died."

"I…"

"Sakura, do you remember who she is?" he said softly.

"Kaou…" I said as I looked at her face.

Oh my god. I thought… I was Amamiya.

I think I… told Syaoran…

And he said… no…

Did he know who I really was?

Amamiya… no, Kaou…

I…

_Sakura! Did you see! Did you see! Look, it's over there!_

_Wow… it's such a pretty tree…_

_Sakura, let's show it to Syaoran!_

_Okay…!_

Kaou… my…

"My cousin…" I muttered.

Toya smiled sadly as he touched my cheek. I didn't know why he did that until I rubbed it with my own hand.

I was crying.

"Sakura… are you okay?" he said.

"Y-yeah…" I murmured. "I'm… alright. So I did know Syaoran... back then."

"Yes..." he said.

I smiled at him.

"Thank you, Toya."

Somehow, he didn't look happy.

"Toya…?" I said.

"Eh, it's nothing," he said. "Let me take you to school."

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

When I came to class, I saw something really weird: Meiling crying.

Now why is that…?

Meh, she's probably sad because she couldn't get a handbag.

I sat next to Eriol, who didn't look happy either.

"Eriol-kun, what's wrong?" I said as I took out my math book.

"Oh… it's nothing," he said.

I looked at Yamazaki, who was sad as well.

Huh…?

"Okay class," said Terada as the students got seated. "Well, today we have some bad news."

I never thought things would get worse after I knew about my past… about the accident.

I thought everything was just a dream…

But…

I guess in my case, it could've gotten worse than this.

"Li Syaoran is moving to China today."

My body was frozen and my brain was numb from the words I had just received. I heard Meiling cry even harder and some whispers from other people, which I couldn't make out.

It didn't matter though…

All that mattered…

Was that what I heard… was true.

"He didn't come here to say goodbyes because of his tight schedule," he continued. "So hopefully this isn't surprising news—"

I suddenly stood up from my chair. Everyone in the class looked at me, including Meiling.

"Kinomoto-san?" said Terada. "What…?"

"I…" I said. "I have to go."

My arm grabbed my bag and my legs suddenly ran out of the classroom, with Terada calling my name.

I didn't care…

I ran out of the school, towards the direction of Syaoran's house.

I need to know…

Syaoran… this isn't true right?

Please… you're not going right…?

The uneasiness in my heart strengthened my legs, and after what seemed twenty minutes, I finally managed to reach his house.

Breathing heavily, I continued to run towards the house, in which I saw a small truck next to it and Syaoran, talking to the driver.

He saw me with his face in complete surprise when I walked to him.

"Sakura…?" he said.

"Syaoran…" I said. "Terada-sensei said that you were going away to China. It's a lie right?"

He looked at me sadly.

"No, it's true," he said quietly. "I'm moving to Hong Kong."

**To be continued…**

Ah, I hope you enjoyed. Haha, you guys thought Amamiya was Sakura... but she's not...! Not to confuse you guys, but yeah, it was Sakura who was in the picture, with Syaoran and Kaou (not Tomoyo)... and for Syaoran's feelings... we'll find out in the next chapter. Oh yes, I know in the original manga about him going to China... there's a reason why I did that. This chapter is actually the longest of this story, since I wanted to add a lot of stuff. Thanks for reading and hope you review! Happy New Year everyone!


	20. The Promise That I Made With You

Well, I'm officially proud to say that this is the final installment of my story. I updated it really fast because I was so excited! I also have some extras at the end at the to help clarify any confusion that you might've had during the whole mess. Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 20**

**The Promise That I Made With You**

**Sakura's POV**

"Syaoran…" I whispered.

"I guess I owe you an apology," he said as he gave me a half smile. "I didn't get to tell you until… way later."

Something was clogging my throat. Was it remorse? I gave a hard swallow.

"Why…?" I managed to choke out.

"My father… his will…" Syaoran muttered. "When he passed away, he left me in possession of half of the company in Hong Kong. The other half was given to my uncle… but he died of a heart attack just a few days ago."

My mind was racing. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"My mother is managing a company here," he said. "So I have to go there… and succeed the position for my father."

"When… when do you have to go?" I gasped.

"This evening," he said quietly.

"…"

There was a long pause.

"So… I was going to call you or something," he finally continued. "But how convenient to see you right now…"

"How long were you planning this?" I said.

"Not that long," he said. "But I didn't want to tell anyone until my last day. Heh, school isn't even over yet."

"And why… why didn't you tell me?" I said.

"Because," he said gently. "You would've stopped me." I stared at him.

"What…?"

But he merely shook his head.

He looked at my face and his own turned gentle. He stepped up to me and touched my shoulders with his warm hands.

My body started to tremble.

"Sakura… thanks for teaching me what I didn't know," he said slowly. "And… thanks for being someone who I could look forward in seeing everyday."

He sounded… normal.

"I…" I started.

He smiled.

Like at that play. I always thought that he would never smile like that again; it was only an imaginative, fake smile.

But this time, it was for real.

He was really smiling; he looked so sincere.

"Of all these years I have lived," he said. "The times that I had the most fun were when I was with you."

"Syaoran…" I said.

"See you… Sakura," he said. He let go of my shoulders.

Then I saw his back as he turned and went to his car.

My body stood rooted to the spot. I wanted to scream… but my body suddenly stopped listening to my mind's demands.

He gave me another smile and started the car.

Don't… don't…go…

My left foot moved a little.

Then the car started moving.

Don't go…!

Then it sped off.

DON'T GO!

I stared as I saw the car turn a corner and the engine roar away. My body finally gave in and I fell on my knees… watching…

He's coming back.

He's…

…gone.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Tomoyo slowly stroked my hair gently with her delicate fingers. I was sitting on her lap with a pillow on my face.

We were at her house, and I had just finished telling her about Syaoran leaving; it was nearly three in the afternoon.

"Sakura-chan…" she said softly. "Are you—?"

"Miserable…" I said immediately, my voice muffled from the pillow.

She sighed. "And what about your feelings for him?" she said.

"I…"

"Did he say anything about… his feelings for you?" she asked.

"No…" I said.

Suddenly she pulled me away from her lap and took my hand.

"I need to show you something," she said finally.

"What…?" I started.

The next thing I knew, by Tomoyo's limo, we were at Syaoran's house.

"Oh… no," I said as I saw the familiar gate. "No, I don't want to…"

"Relax," said Tomoyo. "His mother is at a meeting."

"How do you know?"

"Because… I talked to him, an hour before you came over."

"You did?" I said, surprised.

"Yes… it was about business matters of course," she said. We went out of the limo and slowly walked through the gate.

I had a feeling Tomoyo lied to me, but I decided not to question about it.

"Hello," said Tomoyo as the maid bowed to them. "I left something in Li's room. May I go get it?"

"But of course," said the maid. Tomoyo smiled.

"Thank you," she said. We both took off our shoes and went upstairs to Syaoran's room.

When we got inside, Tomoyo went to the bathroom while I looked at his bed and saw a just a pillow and a green blanket.

So he really is… going. Everything was nearly empty.

I wiped my eyes with my sleeve when Tomoyo came into view again. She was holding the teddy bear and the green book.

"Oh…" I said. "That…"

"I want to… show you something," said Tomoyo. We both sat on the couch and she first gave me the book.

"Oh?" I stared at it.

"That book…" started Tomoyo.

"Isn't this the one he read as a little kid?" I asked as I flipped through the pages and saw the familiar name of Avalon and Kero again.

"Yes well…" said Tomoyo. "Do you know who gave it to him?"

I looked at her. "No—" I started. Her eyes stared at me intently.

No way.

"I…?" I said. "I gave it…?"

I couldn't finish, but Tomoyo nodded.

"You have the sequel," she said. "The cover's pink. Ask your brother."

I stared at the book. I couldn't remember…

She sighed again as she took the book away and now gave me the teddy bear.

"Now that bear…" she said.

"But Kaou gave it to him," I said. "He told me—"

Tomoyo smiled sadly. "Yes," she said. "And he was right."

She slowly took off the ribbon from the teddy bear's arm and flipped the side. I stared at the small scribbled handwriting that flashed at the light's touch.

_Sakura_

"He wrote that…" said Tomoyo. "After she gave him that bear. I, myself… told him to write the name of the person he loves on the ribbon…"

My lips trembled with surprise and pain.

"Tomoyo-chan…" I said as I continued to stare at the ribbon.

"Don't you see?" she said earnestly as she grabbed me by the arms. "He loved you back then and he loves you now. Even knowing that you may not remember him… ever, he still kept those memories of you."

I slowly hugged the teddy bear, my chest clenching in pain.

"Sakura-chan…" she whispered. "You're in love with him aren't you?"

I only nodded. "I thought… he only loved Kaou."

Tomoyo smiled at me tenderly. "Sakura-chan… do you want me to tell you about my conversation with Li?"

"I thought you said it was business," I said.

"Nope," she said. "Well, just the part when I asked how his mom got this gorgeous scarf—"

"Cut to the chase Tomoyo-chan," I said annoyingly. She gave me a small giggle.

"Well… both Li and I decided to meet at the coffee shop…" she began.

**Tomoyo's POV (Flashback)**

"What did she say?" I asked as I watched Syaoran stir his coffee slowly.

"Nothing…" he replied quietly. "She was… just surprised."

"I see…" I said slowly. There was a small pause.

"Did you tell her?" I said finally. "About…" He shook his head.

"I don't need to." He looked certain.

"What do you mean?" I said calmly.

"Sakura was living happily after the crash," he said. "When she forgot everything… she was happy. Did you see her when she remembered?"

I nodded solemnly.

"I don't want her to know how I feel about her," he said. "It'll just make her worry about me… adding in the stress into her knowledge about the car accident. She'd be in a worse mess than she is now."

"Why do you think she would worry about you?" I said, confused.

"Her feelings for me… and my feelings for her," he sighed. "I kept thinking that it would never be…"

"Why…?" I said.

"When I told her… I couldn't be with her before," he said. "I hurt her… a lot… and she wanted to hide it. If I told her now…"

"So you think… Sakura-chan will think differently of you," I said. His lips were relaxed, but his jaws were clenched together.

"That's… a possibility."

"You're not just trying to protect her," I concluded. "You're also afraid that she won't reciprocate."

"You're very observant, as always," he said grumpily.

"And what if none of that happens?" I asked. "What will you do then?"

"I don't know," he answered truthfully.

"You know that if you leave now," I said. "She may be even worse off than you telling her your feelings."

"Why do you say that?" he said. He had just finished his coffee.

I looked down at my own cup and swirled the cream to make a heart.

"Because… if you told her how you felt about her," I explained. "She would know that she wasn't the reason why you left."

"She thinks she's the reason why I'm leaving?" he said. His voice strained bemusement.

"Didn't you say yourself," I said. "That she was?"

"My company—" he started.

"Like you'd care about your father's company," I giggled. He frowned in irritation.

"What about Kaou?" I said. "You never really love her did you?"

"I guess not…" he said quietly.

"Why did you think you loved her?" I said curiously.

He sighed. "The accident… it made me so guilty. For causing her death… I always thought that maybe if I loved her… everything would be okay."

"But you don't," I said firmly. He didn't reply.

"When did you find out that she was the Sakura from seven years ago?"

"That day… when I was with her when she visited her parent's graves," he said. "I wasn't certain… but I had a feeling… and then Toya confirmed it."

"You knew all that way back, and you said nothing," I said. "You must have… been in a lot of pain."

"Not really."

I smiled. "You've changed."

He looked up at me.

"You think I did?" he said. "How?"

"In more ways than one," I replied. He didn't smile, but instead gave a small cough.

"Daidouji…" he said. "I need you to do me a favor."

"What is it?" I said.

"The bear… the book," he said. "I left them in the bathroom. You can show_ my secret _to her now."

I beamed.

"So you really do… love Sakura don't you?"

He looked at me and grinned.

"What do you think?" he said.

**Sakura's POV (End Flashback)**

"Syaoran…" I gasped. I gulped.

"I guess your mother was right," said Tomoyo. "'Even if you two people in love are separated for a long time, they could always find each other again…'"

"Tomoyo-chan," I started. "I…"

"Sakura-chan," she said. "I'm not going to help you this time. You know what to do now."

"Thank you, Tomoyo-chan."

She beamed. "Sakura-chan, even though I didn't know you for long back then," she said. "You always made me feel so happy being with you. I can see why Syaoran fell in love with you."

She helped me up.

"Right?" she said gently. I nodded.

"Then… let's go," she said. "You still have time; the plane's taking off at nine."

I looked at the clock and saw that it was six in the evening.

Ten minutes later, I was at my house. I saw Tomoyo's limousine drive away as I ran to the door and jammed the keys in.

I quickly opened the door and dashed upstairs, nearly colliding with Toya.

"S-Sakura?" he said.

"Toya!" I gasped. "My pink book… I need it!"

"Er…" he started.

"Please!" I nearly cried.

"Oh—okay..." he said. We both went inside our parent's room.

He looked through the closet and finally fished out the pink book. It was the exact same size as the green one.

I quickly opened it and saw that Avalon and Kero were still there.

"Thanks Toya," I breathed.

"Sakura…" he said. "Why do you need that book?"

I looked at him. "I'm going to meet Syaoran," I said bravely.

"What?" he exclaimed.

"Toya!" I snapped. "I'm not a kid anymore! You have to let go with what happened in the past!"

"But Sakura—" he started.

"It's not his fault," I said quickly. "What happened before… it was all an accident."

"Sakura…" he said.

"I'm sorry Toya," I said. "But I… I really love him. And I can't live without him."

He finally sighed.

"Please Toya," I said pleadingly. "For me."

"Fine," he said as he grabbed his car keys. "I guess… I have no choice. After all… it was what Dad wanted: for you to be happy."

I beamed.

He went on ahead while I tried to find a bag. I placed the book inside and saw my Kero doll.

"Kero-chan," I whispered. "I'll be right back."

**Syaoran's POV**

I didn't know… what Sakura really felt.

I wonder if what Daidouji said was true.

"One flight ticket to Hong Kong?" said the clerk. I looked up at her.

"Yeah…" I said.

I looked at the clock. It was nearly eight p.m.

Sakura was trying to tell me something, but I decided to ignore her. Maybe if I had let her speak…

I took the ticket that the clerk gave me and started to walk towards the gate.

Am I making a mistake?

I stared at the sky. It was darker than usual. I sighed.

"Sakura…" I muttered.

But it's probably for the best.

I went on the escalator and looked at the window outside. It was starting to rain.

**Sakura's POV**

I was running… with all my might through the building. Toya had just dropped me off and I ran the rest of the way.

It was so strange, how time was going quicker than I had expected. I didn't think it would be this fast.

It was already eight p.m.

"I'll find him…!" I muttered to myself as I saw the board that listed the flights. I stared at number for the plane for Hong Kong.

It was leaving in forty minutes.

NO…!

I ran again, my breath nearly out of it, towards the gate for the plane for Hong Kong.

I couldn't have missed him.

He's not gone…

He's still here…!

I didn't see him anywhere. There was a huge crowd of people around the gates.

Syaoran…

Don't go…

I gasped for breath, clutching at my bag.

And then…

"_The plane for Hong Kong has departed. Plane 0035 will arrive in ten minutes. Passengers, please report to the main gate."_

It was too late.

I slowly walked outside, watching the sky. It was dark, and out poured the tears from heaven. They spilled out from the sky to the ground… just like my tears that fell from my face…

I saw on the wet bench, getting myself drenched from head to foot. But I didn't care. I couldn't feel the cold… because the pain in my chest was too great.

And before I knew it, I was really crying…

I hid the bag with the book inside my coat as I cried.

How could I have just waited for that moment, when it was all too late?

I should have figured out my feelings sooner… when he was always there for me. When he tried to protect me…

And when he wouldn't let me go… until now…

Will I be able to ever let him go?

I guess… I…

"You know, you're going to get a cold if you stay outside any longer."

I blinked.

That voice…

No I wasn't hallucinating…

But it can't be…

I slowly turned around and saw Syaoran, standing a yard away from me, smiling. He was wearing a suit, and was entirely soaked. I blinked a lot; maybe it was the rain that was making me see…

"Syao…?"

"Eh, I think I remember saying that I would see you again, so…"

My legs brought me to stand up and I was walking to him. I couldn't believe it. Was this real?

My foot tripped on something and I started to fall.

"Ahh…!"

He caught me in his arms and I felt his warmth.

He always came at the right moment…

He's here. He's actually here. I cried even harder this time.

"Syaoran!"

"H-hey… don't cry…" he said as I sobbed in his shirt. He was holding me gently, yet firmly as though I was going to fall again.

"It's your fault…" I cried.

"Yeah I know…" he said softly. "I'm sorry…"

And then he hugged me. He felt so warm… and I was so happy.

We both walked inside the building and sat down on the waiting seats, but he didn't let me go.

"Are you… are you really going?" I asked when he finally released me. His smile stayed, but it had gloom to it.

"Yes…" he said quietly. "I'm taking a private plane."

"Ah… I see." I felt a frown on my face.

He hugged me again. "Sakura," he whispered. "I'm going to come back. Will you wait for me?"

"Yes…" I said softly.

We looked into each other's eyes.

"Promise?" he said grinning. He held up his pinky. I wrapped it around my own.

"Promise," I said, smiling back.

Then he kissed me on the forehead, and I blushed. He finally pulled away from me.

"Oh here..." I added, giving him the bag with the book. He looked inside and smiled again.

"Thank you."

"Good bye…"

"I'm coming back remember?" he reminded me. "I'll see you later."

"Oh yeah," I said. "See you."

He slowly walked towards the gate.

"Oh, and Syaoran," I called. He stopped to look at me.

"About Avalon," I said. "She goes with Showron in the end."

"Thanks for spoiling," he said. "Stupid."

I laughed as he waved and walked through the gate. Twenty minutes later, I watched his plane fly away.

That's right…

I'll wait for you Syaoran, here, even after I die.

After all, that is _the promise that I made with you_.

**End.**

WAHHHHHHHHHHHHH! IT'S OVER! Or is it? Hwahahaha! Just kidding, it is. But I'm actually making a special side chapter to this, so this story will still be In Progress until the next chapter. Yay!

Thanks to all the reviewers (there's too many to name!). I'm so happy that this story is finally at an end (and a little sad too). Hope you guys give your final reviews and stuff; I'll be always looking forward to it! (grins)

**Notes from the writer…**

Now that you're finally relieved from the whole "what's-going-on-with-Sakura-thing," I'd like to make some comments to some of the reviews on my chapters.

I'm actually pretty impressed by many of the reviewers' predictions of Sakura and her past. Many guessed what I thought they would guess and very few thought of assumptions that were very close to right.

**Frequently asked question(s): Why isn't Sakura "Amamiya" and how could you know (through the story) that it wasn't her? **

Answering the first question, I admit that I made two different plots of this story: one would be that Sakura was the mysterious girl who was actually Amamiya, and one where Sakura was only involved about Amamiya (almost like a side character). However, if I made Sakura the mysterious girl Amamiya, it would be too obvious and boring. So I decided to go with my second plot, _but _since I like Syaoran and Sakura pairings, I made Sakura the girl that Syaoran initially loved. You can say that I made Sakura an important character, but without the Mary-Sueness. I actually liked Eriol's quote from the original Cardcaptor Sakura, when he said that the most fun thing in the world was the unexpected. I like irony in stories, and so I made this story surrounding Eriol's quote.

As for the second question, I placed a lot of hints in Chapter 16 and if you refer back to it, Syaoran has a flashback sort of dream of him and Sakura when they were little. Notice that in Sakura's flashback dream, Syaoran called her _Sakura _when he refers Kaou as Amamiya; so it's obviously assumed that Amamiya was definitely _not _Sakura. In Chapter 9, Syaoran had a flashback sequence of someone talking to him about a teddy bear's birthday and offering him one; that was Kaou. In Chapter 16, the person talking to him didn't really know about the bear; that was Sakura. In Chapter 6, both Tomoyo and Syaoran agreed that Sakura looked like a certain person; they were talking about Sakura as a child, not Kaou (though Tomoyo didn't really know Sakura back then, because she met Sakura and Syaoran right before the days of the crash); Syaoran wasn't sure about Sakura and her true identity, and he believed that the real Sakura was already dead as well along with Kaou, until at Chapter 19, when Toya confirmed Syaoran's suspicion.

**In some of the chapters, Sakura hears voices. Why does she hear them?**

I know it's kinda freaky for someone to hear voices. It sort of looks like Sakura has some supernatural power to hear ghosts or something, doesn't it? However, as amusing as it might be, she doesn't; the voices are from Toya and Syaoran, at the day of the crash (she was trying to remember that day).

**I didn't get what happened about Sakura and the picture in Chapter 19.**

Actually the picture was black and white so Sakura couldn't tell if it was Tomoyo or not. I think I forgot to mention it right after I released Chapter 11, but I edited it after a few days of its release (sorry for you people who missed it). And yes, Sakura had long hair back then, just like Nadeshiko. Sadly, she had to cut it (shave it actually) because of her surgery.

**Extra stuff! (grins widely)**

**Characters Profiles**

I want to put in character profiles for some of the major characters so you guys can know what they are like in my fanfiction (some people told me that they got confused at what age and stuff the characters are). Oh yeah and these characters are based on my fanfiction, not the real manga or anime, so restrain yourselves Cardcaptor Sakura fans (although some info are the same on the manga) and please, mind the disclaimer. I don't own CCS or its manga, including its characters. So, here we go!

**Kinomoto Sakura**

Age: 17 (In the beginning of my chapters she was 16, but turned 17 on her birthday in Chapter 6)

Birthday: April 1st

Family: Mother (deceased), Father (deceased), and Older brother

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Stuffed animals

Dislikes: Scary stuff

Love Interest: (first) Ishimaru Kazuma, (second and final) Li Syaoran

Comments: I tried to make Sakura not naïve. Well, not as much as the Sakura in the original manga. There are a lot of secrets that she faced about her past and it would be kind of dumb if she didn't get any of them. I also tried to make her somewhat strong (but not too strong) since I thought the original Sakura was pretty much of a pushover. In her childhood, she actually had feelings for Syaoran when they met, though she felt that he was happier with Kaou, so she pretended that she was just a close friend. When she got into Seijyu, the season was late winter (about early Febuary), but I intended this chapter's setting to be somewhere in late June, or midsummer. So basically my whole story spanned a little over half a year.

**Li Syaoran**

Age: 18

Birthday: July 13th

Family: Father (deceased) and Mother and Uncle (deceased)

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Peace, quiet, and smoking

Dislikes: Annoying people

Love Interest: Kinomoto Sakura

Comments: I made Syaoran pretty much like the Syaoran from the original Cardcaptor Sakura series, but I intensified his temper so that he would stay mean for a longer time, even though Sakura was there. He's actually a sweet guy, but a little stubborn. He's great at fighting of course, and really perceptive, almost as good as Tomoyo. He's the guy who always gets in the middle of things, and finds out about people more than others. As for the cherry blossom tree that he always hangs out in the beginning, it was the place where Sakura showed him the tree with Kaou. I mentioned in Chapter 20 that he "loved" Kaou because he felt guilty for not returning her feelings, especially when she died, though in actuality, he had loved Sakura very deeply since he first met her. Oh yes, and Sakura was the one who cheered him up after his father died when they were little (mentioned by Syaoran in Chapter 11). Isn't that cute?

**Daidouji Tomoyo**

Age: 17

Birthday: September 3rd

Family: Father (deceased) and Mother

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Real life drama (especially Sakura's and Syaoran's)

Dislikes: Anything simple

Love Interest: Hiiragizawa Eriol

Comments: She's intelligent, observant, kind, and a bit of a funny one. Basically I made her just like the original, but a grown up version. This time, she's paired with Eriol. Dude, I don't get why CLAMP made Eriol and Kaho together. Sure he got reincarnated at the exact date of Fujitaka and is the same age as him, but at the appearance of a child because of his magic. Sure he's wiser than any ten year old child in Japan. But why CLAMP, why?! Tomoyo would've been perfect for him! That's why I made them together in this one, because after all, it's my story anyway. Hwahaha!

**Kinomoto Toya**

Age: 24

Birthday: February 29th

Family: Father (deceased), Mother (deceased), and Younger Sister

Occupation: Student teacher

Likes: Making food

Dislikes: Guys that are the same age as Sakura

Love Interest: Mizuki Kaho

Comments: I actually made Toya like Syaoran somewhat instead of hating him. He only acted cold towards him because he didn't want Sakura to remember in fear of her getting hurt. He's caring, great at cooking, and always knows when to bug Sakura. I made him in touch with Kaho, though it's not mentioned in the story because Kaho isn't really a main character (in the story).

**Tsukishiro Yukito**

Age: 24

Birthday: December 25th

Family: Grandfather and Grandmother

Occupation: Manager of a restaurant

Likes: Eating

Dislikes: Making food

Love Interest: None

Comments: I didn't want the whole Yukito and Toya love thing, mainly because if I did, it would've been a little weird. In the story, he lives with his grandfather and grandmother, but visits Toya often to give him free food from his restaurant. He's like the second older brother to Sakura, and seems like the nice one compared to Toya. He wants Sakura to be happy, and usually takes her side instead of Toya's. He also knew about the accident, but kept it a secret since Toya told him to.

**Amamiya Kaou**

Age: 10 (deceased); if she had lived, she would be 17

Birthday: March 15th

Family: Mother (deceased), Father (deceased), Aunt (deceased), Uncle (deceased), and two cousins (Toya and Sakura)

Occupation: None

Likes: Scary stuff

Dislikes: Bugs

Love Interest: Li Syaoran

Comments: I didn't really intend to make Kaou a profile, but what the heck I did. Kaou is from Sakura's mother's side of the family, hence that her last name is Amamiya. She actually had short hair when she was alive, while Sakura had long hair (this is one of the reasons why Sakura thought she was Kaou). She moved to live with her aunt and uncle (Sakura's parents) because her mother and father had died from sickness. She fell in love with Syaroan, even giving him a teddy bear, but found out that her love was unrequited when she discovered that Syaoran loved Sakura (she eventually confirmed this after seeing Syaoran write Sakura's name on the teddy bear). She believed that if she told Syaoran she loved him first, he would love her back (but he still didn't). When she was dying from the accident, she realizes her mistake in telling him and feared that it would scar him. She told him that she would be okay, signaling her to finally let go of him. Though Syaoran didn't love Kaou as much as he loves Sakura, he still thinks of her as someone who is important to him. Now you're probably wondering, why the heck did you name her Kaou? Well her name basically means, "peony," which is Syaoran's favorite flower (hears the "oohs").

**Yanagisawa Naoko**

Age: 17

Birthday: October 11th

Family: Mother and Father

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Anything related to horror and mystery

Dislikes: TV dramas

Love Interest: None

Comments: She's hyper, but not as hyper as Chiharu. She loves horror movies, and hates dramas because to her, it's not "exciting." She doesn't really bring a prominent role to the story, but is more like a supporting character.

**Sasaki Rika**

Age: 17

Birthday: June 24th

Family: Mother and Father

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Tidiness

Dislikes: Homework

Love Interest: Yoshiyuki Terada

Comments: She's actually one of my favorite characters, and her drama involving Terada made me want to write a chapter about her. She's much like Tomoyo, except less observant because she's more of a "mind your own business" kind of person. She's really calm and less hyper than Naoko or Chiharu, but nonetheless, a very cool person.

**Mihara Chiharu**

Age: 17

Birthday: May 28th

Family: Mother and Father

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Funny stuff

Dislikes: People lying

Love Interest: Yamazaki Takashi

Comments: She's actually the second most hyper character in the story. Yamazaki is the first. I guess you can see why they match. She's the most determined and tough one, but knows when to back down when she has to. She thinks Syaoran is annoying, but grows to like him as a friend when she starts hanging out with him. Although she sometimes beats up Yamazaki, she actually really loves him.

**Yamazaki Takashi**

Age: 17

Birthday: June 1st

Family: Mother and Father

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Joking

Dislikes: Party poopers

Love Interest: Mihara Chiharu

Comments: He's the most hyper of all the characters of this story. Mainly because I wanted a comic relief since this is a drama type fic. He loves pissing Syaoran off, and even though he knows he's at the limit, he goes far anyway. He loves Chiharu a lot, and knows that even though she beats him up, she has a heart for him too.

**Rae Meiling**

Age: 17

Birthday: August 13th

Family: Mother and Father

Occupation: High School Student

Likes: Compliments

Dislikes: Anything negative

Love Interest: Li Syaoran

Comments: I made up her birthday, in case you're wondering (just one month after Syaoran's). Either CLAMP didn't make one up or it was mentioned and I didn't catch it (All the birthdays I have are their real birthdays from the manga). Anywho, she's a bitch isn't she (in my story, I mean)? There are probably some Meiling fans out there, but sorry to say, I personally don't like Meiling at all. She's annoying, a little selfish, and a bit of a crybaby. Plus, she's a filler character (sorry fans). So, I kind of made her the enemy of my story (and probably will be in most of my other stories). I dropped her after Chapter 15 because well… she doesn't really play a real role except maybe being annoying. Anyway, she was mentioned after that, but doesn't show up. Although in my new story that I will post, I'll be a bit nicer to her.

That's it for the characters!

**In conclusion…**

Well, those seemed to be the major questions that were asked by both reviews and PMs. Thanks for enjoying this story (if you have). I'm happy that this became quite a success (ahehehe). Check out my other stories if want (my next project will be _Hello, Neighbor _and _The Last Nagori_). Also, look at my profile page if you want to see if there are updates or not; I usually post a wannabe blog every few days to inform readers on what's going on and when I'll possibly update my chapters. Until then… Ja neh!


	21. The Unexpected Mission

Hey everyone! This is a bonus story! WHEEEE! Don't know what's it about? Well, you'll soon find out! Note that this is like a **written omake**, meaning it's not really true to the original plot, rather, it's a special story that is picked at a random time given certain exceptions to the characters (so in this case, Syaoran's back from Hong Kong); so this isn't really the epilogue of the story (well, sort of). Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 21: Special Story!**

**The Unexpected Mission**

**Sakura's POV**

"Hm?" said Chiharu. "Where's Tomoyo-chan?"

She, Naoko, Rika, Yamazaki, Syaoran, and I were waiting near a café. We were all planning to watch a movie together after dinner.

It was freezing, and the snow had just lifted.

"Oh, she said she's coming later today," I said, my voice slightly high from the cold. "She had to go buy something…"

"Hey, Eriol-kun isn't here too!" said Naoko. Everyone except for Syaoran gasped.

Chiharu's eyes flickered with excitement. "I wonder why?!" she said enthusiastically.

"Who cares?" said Syaoran. "It's probably just a coincidence—"

"A coincidence?!" shouted Yamazaki suddenly. "There is no coincidence in this world!"

"Shut up!" Syaoran snapped as he punched him on the face.

"Wah… so cruel…" Yamazaki rubbed his cheek.

"Syaoran! That's mean!" I said as Syaoran flinched.

"Wha—" he started.

"Yeah, just because you got your hands on Kinomoto doesn't mean you can ruin the fun!" said Yamazaki. I punched him as well.

"I'm mean?" said Syaoran as he stared at the fainted Yamazaki.

"Oh, shut up," I said. Syaoran chuckled as Chiharu sighed.

"I wonder if… Eriol-kun's with Tomoyo-chan?" said Rika.

"I'll call her and ask—" I started.

"NO!" yelled Chiharu, Naoko, and Yamazaki at the same time.

"E-eh?" I said.

"Of course Tomoyo-chan's gonna lie about being with Eriol-kun!" said Chiharu.

"And of course they're together!" said Naoko. "They're always together!"

"Uh… that's because they're both student class presidents…" I said.

"So? Hanging out on a SUNDAY afternoon?!" said Chiharu shrilly. "I think NOT!"

"Oh boy, you guys are way too into this," said Rika.

"Let us press onward and find Tomoyo-chan and Eriol-kun!" commanded Chiharu.

"Yeah!" cheered Naoko and Yamazaki.

"Okay… I don't have any plans today," said Rika as she smiled.

"Er… sure," I said. Is it me, or is it freaking freezing?

"I'm bored, I'm going home," said Syaoran as he pulled his scarf tighter to his mouth.

"No Li! We need you!" said Yamazaki as he grabbed Syaoran's legs.

"Screw you, idiot!" said Syaoran angrily as he tried to shake him off. "This is so stupid!"

"Oh, Syaoran, please?" I said as I held his hand. "C'mon, it'll be fun!"

Syaoran slightly blushed and stood silent. Everyone held their breaths…

"Fine," he said finally. "But it's only because I have nothing better to do…"

Everyone cheered.

"Thank you," I said.

"Hmph."

"Okay! Let's go!" said Yamazaki.

"Why do you need Syaoran anyway?" I whispered to Yamazaki.

"Oh… well," he said. "You'll see."

"Hm?" I said.

"Hey you!" said a voice. All of us turned around and saw five gangsters surrounding us.

"Hey pretty lady," said one to Rika as he tried to touch her. She gasped and hid behind me. The whole gang laughed out loud. It was a sickening sight.

"Give us the girls and we'll let you go," said the leader to Yamazaki. "Or you'll all be in for a good pounding."

"Wh-what?!" I exclaimed.

"Um… you wouldn't want to do that," said Yamazaki.

"And why not—?" started the leader.

In one second flat he was on the ground, his face bloody and nearly torn up.

"Wh-what the—?" started another gang member. In another second, he was on the ground as well. The remaining three looked fearfully at their provoker.

"Don't fuck with me," said Syaoran coldly as he wiped some of the blood, which was _not _his own, on the snow.

"Wh-Whoa!" yelled a gang member. "H-He's a monster!"

"Told you," said Yamazaki dully.

"R-Run for it!" cried another one. Carrying the two fallen members, the rest of the gang sprinted out of sight.

"Ah… so he's like our bodyguard…" I said unsurprisingly.

"And a good one too!" said Yamazaki happily.

"You have no self confidence, do you?" I said, but Yamazaki didn't hear me.

"Okay, well," said Chiharu. "Let's partner up!"

"Yes!" said Yamazaki. "Great plan! Okay Yanagisawa, you're with Kinomoto. Chiharu, you're with me, and Li, you're with Sasaki!"

I felt a sudden wave of anger heat emitting from Syaoran. I looked at him and saw that he was glaring angrily at Yamazaki.

"Um… Syaoran…" I started.

Yamazaki reacted to the danger faster than I did.

"Uh—I mean Kinomoto—ahaha!" he said nervously. "Silly me—Kinomoto, _you're_ with Li. Um… sorry about that."

"Hmph," said Syaoran. I smiled at him.

"Rika-chan, Naoko-chan," said Chiharu. "You guys go with us. Sakura-chan… er… will be fine with Li-kun."

"Oh, alright," said Naoko as she smiled at Syaoran and me. "Let's go guys!"

"OKAY!" yelled Chiharu.

"YEAH!" shouted Yamazaki.

"Ooh," mused Rika.

"Ehehe…" I laughed.

"Ugh…" sighed Syaoran.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Hmm…" I said as I looked at a restaurant that we just passed.

"What's wrong?" said Syaoran. "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah… a little," I admitted as my stomach gave a small growl. He looked at the place where I was staring at.

Then he grabbed my hand and started to walk in it. Not to my surprise, it was pleasantly warm.

"H-Hey, what're you doing?" I said.

"You're hungry, right?" he said. "Let's have lunch."

"But I don't have money…" I started.

"Idiot, I'm going to eat too," he said as he opened the door. In other words, he was going to pay for it.

We both sat down on a table with a grill in the center. It was so warm inside…

"What do you want?" he said as he watched me scan the menu.

"Er…" I started.

"Would you like to order?" said a voice. I looked up and saw a young woman, just about a year older than me, with a cute face and long black hair. She was looking at Syaoran; I figured she was just asking him.

"Sakura?" he said as he looked at me.

"Uh…" I started again.

"What about you?" she interrupted, still looking at him.

"Okonomiyaki…" I mumbled.

"Two okonomiyaki please," he said to her as he gave her the menus. She winked at him, but he just responded with a small smile.

"Er…" I said as she left. "She has the hots for you."

"Huh?" he said, puzzled.

I sighed. "Nothing…" I said as I looked outside. All the streets were nearly covered with snow…

The woman came back with our two dishes and winked at Syaoran again. He looked at my annoyed expression and winked at the lady back.

What the hell does he think he's doing?!

"Here you go," said the lady sweetly.

"Thanks," he said. He gave her a smile which made her blush. She quickly turned away and ran to her coworkers (who were also girls) and they all giggled.

I wanted to punch that girl. Syaoran suddenly laughed and I glared at him.

"Are you jealous?" he said, grinning.

"No," I replied crossly. He leaned on to my face as I leaned back.

"What are you doing?" I whispered. "Don't embarrass us!"

"I'm not," he said. "You really are jealous."

"I am n—"

"LI! KINOMOTO!" shouted Yamazaki as he suddenly appeared beside us. "THIS ISN'T THE TIME FOR YOU TWO TO BE ON A DATE!"

"AHH!" I cried out in surprise. Syaoran was furious.

"SHUT UP!" he snapped as he punched Yamazaki on the face. Yamazaki managed to crash through the restaurant window without getting any severe cuts (though he got a bloody nose).

"We tried to stop him," said Chiharu dully, as she, Rika, and Naoko appeared from behind. "But he couldn't resist."

"Er…" I said.

The manager was so scared of Syaoran that he didn't charge him for breaking the window. The girl employees liked him even more, which made me a little annoyed.

"Um… did he ruin a moment between you guys?" asked Chiharu quietly as we watched Rika and Naoko help Yamazaki stand up. I looked at Syaoran, who still looked mad.

"Er… kind of…" I said.

"Eh… sorry," she said sincerely. I nodded. "It's alright," I whispered. "We needed to get out of there anyway…"

"Why?" she asked, confusion in her voice.

"Er… because…" I said as I looked to see if Syaoran was around. My voice dropped further. "Some girls were flirting with him."

"Aw, were you jealous?!" she said, a little too loudly.

"Shh!" I said angrily as I felt Syaoran turn to us.

"Sorry…!" she whispered back. I sighed.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan," she said. "Even though he's a jerk sometimes… he really does love you."

"Yeah…" I said.

"S-Sorry about… er… ruining your lunch," muttered Yamazaki sadly as he slowly walked to us.

"It's okay," I said cheerfully. "Let's continue finding Tomoyo-chan and Eriol-kun, shall we?"

"Well…" said Chiharu as she picked up her cell phone. "A friend of mine texted me where Hiiragizawa was at; maybe Tomoyo-chan's with him too."

"Okay, lead the way, Chiharu!" said Yamazaki.

"Okay!" said Chiharu. She led us to a clothes store.

"He's in here?" I said. Chiharu nodded.

"We need two people to stay outside, in case he comes out and the rest doesn't see him," she said. She smiled at me sweetly.

"Fine," I answered dully. Syaoran stayed at my side.

"Okay! Everyone inside!" she said and they all rushed inside the store. I felt a huge heat wave pass me as the doors opened.

We waited for five minutes, but they didn't come back. Damn it, I should've gone in…

"Hey…" said Syaoran suddenly. "Are you cold?"

"Nah… I'm… fine," I said slowly, my teeth slight chattering.

He grabbed his scarf and wrapped it around my neck.

"Syaoran…?" I started. He grabbed my hands and I felt the familiar pleasant warmth from his.

"Whoa, you're ice cold," he said.

"I… guess…" I said slowly. He brought my hands to his lips and exhaled his hot breath onto my icy fingers. I blushed again.

"Feel better?" he said.

"Y-yeah…" I said, my face flushing.

"Ah! Sakura-san, Li!" said a familiar voice. I looked to the side and saw a grinning Eriol holding hands with…

A girl? And an unfamiliar one at that…

"Oh, Eriol-kun!" I said. Syaoran dropped our hands, but held one of mine at the side.

"Hey, Hiiragizawa," he said.

"Good afternoon," said the girl, who smiled as well. I looked slowly at Syaoran, who did the same thing at me. Then we slowly looked back at Eriol.

"Er… what a pleasant surprise…" I said carefully. Syaoran stared at the girl.

"Yes, well," said Eriol. "I was just here to do some Christmas shopping."

"Oh… r-really?" I said, my voice faltering. "Well… er…"

Who is this girl? Could it be…?

"Oh, I'm sorry," said the girl. She bowed to us. "My name is Akizuki Nakuru."

"Eh, sorry guys," said Eriol. "But Nakuru and I have some important things to do. I'll meet you guys later, okay?"

"Oh—okay," I said. Nakuru bowed.

"Bye!" she said. She held hands with Eriol and both of them walked down the street.

"Er…" I said as I watched them slowly disappear among the crowd.

"Huh, wonder where's Daidouji?" said Syaoran. I looked up at him, and he gave me a look that said, _I knew it._

Sigh.

"Hey guys," said Chiharu as the gang finally came outside. "Did you see Eriol-kun?"

"Er…" I said. What should I say…?

"We did," said Syaoran. "Actually we kind of talked too."

Syaoran?

"Er, I guess Tomoyo-chan wasn't with him, huh?" said Rika.

"No, he was with another girl," replied Syaoran. There was a short, awkward silence.

"WHAT?" said Yamazaki incredulously. "Impossible!"

"Oh… no…!" said Naoko sadly.

"No, it must be something else!" said Chiharu stubbornly. "Let's follow them!"

"Why?" said Syaoran. "We saw them together. What more do you need?"

"It might be something else!" said Chiharu angrily.

"Are you calling me a liar?!"

"Well—!"

"Stop guys!" I snapped. I sighed as they both glared at each other.

"Let's watch him for a bit," I said. I saw Syaoran's gap and Chiharu's smile. "BUT, once you guys see her, we're leaving."

Chiharu gave a slight frown. "Fine," she said. "Let's head out!"

Everyone except Syaoran hurriedly ran down the street where Eriol and Nakuru had just passed by.

Syaoran didn't move. So I didn't either.

"Why did you side with her?" he said, in a deadly whisper.

"Well, it's sort of reasonable," I said simply. "She stands for the other guys; I'm sure they wanted to see too. Besides…"

I glared at him as he stared.

"This is your punishment."

"What?" he said, half confused. "What did I do?"

"Hmph," I said. "I'm not telling."

"Was it because I was 'flirting' with that waitress?" he said lamely. He said that so bluntly… which made me mad.

"Okay, just smack it into my face will you?!" I said as he shrunk a little from my anger. "Thanks Syaoran, for being the biggest jerk in history!"

"Wha—but—" he started.

"See you!" I said as I stomped off. He followed me… of course.

I spotted the rest of the group hiding in a corner and watching through the window. Chiharu spotted me and pulled me near the window too.

"You guys were right…" she said, sounding defeated. "Damn…"

I saw Eriol holding a box of some sort… was it jewelry? He was laughing and talking with Nakuru, who was holding his arm.

"So what do we do now?" said Rika.

"Well—" started Naoko.

"Hey guys," said a familiar voice. "What are you all doing here?"

All of us jumped and turned around. It was Tomoyo.

"Er… Tomoyo-chan…" I started.

"Ah, Tomoyo-chan, w-what are _you_ doing here?" stuttered Chiharu.

"Oh, I was Christmas shopping," said Tomoyo. She looked at me. "Didn't Sakura-chan tell you guys?"

"M-Must have slipped our minds," said Naoko nervously.

Tomoyo smiled and everyone except Syaoran and I flinched.

"As I asked before… why are you all here?" said Tomoyo. "It looked like you guys saw something—"

"IT WAS NOTHING!" Yamazaki nearly shouted.

"Er okay…" said Tomoyo as she winced. "Well… I'll see you guys later tonight, I have to drop all the stuff I bought back home…"

I looked at Naoko, Chiharu, and Yamazaki. They looked a little sad. Ah…

"Wait, Tomoyo-chan," I said. Everyone stared at me.

"Yes?" said Tomoyo pleasantly.

"Er…" I said. "It's about Eriol-kun."

Tomoyo's expression didn't change. "What's up?" she said. Chiharu positioned her arms to make in 'X' across her chest behind Tomoyo, but I ignored her.

"I don't want to… er… intrude," I said. "But, what do you think of him?"

Tomoyo blinked.

Chiharu and Naoko looked at me open mouthed.

"Well…" said Tomoyo slowly. "I think of him as a close friend to me."

"Oh," I said. "Er… is that all?"

"Mm… pretty much," said Tomoyo thoughtfully.

Chiharu looked like she was on the verge of tears and Naoko just sighed. Yamazaki was already bawling.

"Wh-what's wrong?" said Tomoyo worriedly. "Is something the matter?"

"No—nothing's up," said Rika hastily as she gave Chiharu and Yamazaki a napkin. "The common cold, you know?"

"Oh…" said Tomoyo. "Well, feel better guys. See you at the restaurant!"

She gave us one last soft smile and walked to her just arrived limo. All of us watched her get in the car and drive away.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Er… I hate to say 'I told you so'…" said Syaoran as we all headed towards a restaurant for dinner.

"You just did," I said bleakly.

"No!" moaned Chiharu. "How could I be wrong? They looked like such a cute couple…"

"Yes…" I said. "But both of them seem to be happy. This case is closed, okay guys?"

"Okay…" said both Chiharu and Yamazaki.

"Hey…!" said Eriol as he came to us. "Sorry for the wait!"

He wasn't with Nakuru, and instead was with…

"Tomoyo-chan?" I said bemused.

"Hello!" she said as she beamed. "Eriol gave me a ride."

Everyone eyed each other except Syaoran who sighed.

"Er… you could've brought Nakuru-chan," I said slowly. "We wouldn't mind."

I felt Chiharu and Yamazaki's glare, but I continued to smile at him. Tomoyo looked at Eriol.

"Nah, its okay," said Eriol. "Besides, she wanted to go home anyway."

Chiharu almost cried again.

"So… shall we eat?" I said as I gave Chiharu another tissue.

"Yeah, I'm starving," said Rika.

"Ah," said Tomoyo suddenly. "Eriol-kun, can you help me bring the presents for everyone?"

"The ones in the trunk?" said Eriol. "Okay."

They smiled at each other.

"Aw guys," I said. "You didn't have to—"

"Don't worry!" said Tomoyo. "I know Christmas isn't until the next three days, but I get excited easily."

"Eh, thank you Tomoyo-chan," said Rika. Everyone except Tomoyo and Eriol went inside the restaurant.

We took a table and waited. Inside was noisy but warm. I finally stopped shivering.

Syaoran suddenly stood up and took out his cell phone from his pocket. "Ah, it's my mom," he said as he looked at it. "Be right back guys."

He slowly walked outside, talking on his phone.

"At least it's a happy ending for you two lovebirds," sighed Chiharu as she looked at me. I smiled.

"Did you two _do it_ yet?" said Yamazaki suspiciously.

"What—?!" I exclaimed. Chiharu punched him.

**Syaoran's POV**

"Yeah, okay Mom," I said on the phone.

"Goodbye dear," she said. Click.

Ugh, I have to pick up the wine that she ordered. Maybe I should tell her the order was delayed…

"Oh… Eriol-kun, it's beautiful," said Daidouji's voice. I turned around and stood by the wall. Eriol and Daidouji were smiling at each other and she was holding something…

Hey, wasn't that the present Eriol had when he was with that Nakuru girl?

"I doubt we'll have time to celebrate our anniversary later since we're going to spend our Christmas Eve with everyone else," said Eriol. "I'm sorry Tomoyo."

"It's alright," said Daidouji as she fastened Eriol's gift onto her coat: it was a diamond brooch.

Anniversary?

"Eh, I asked Nakuru to help me find a gift for you," he said sheepishly. "Sorry it's so plain."

"Oh no, it's wonderful," she said. "Your cousin has good taste."

Cousin, eh?

"Oh, but I don't have your gift right now…" she started. Eriol kissed her on the forehead.

"I already have you," he said. "I don't need anyone or anything else."

They both smiled at each other as they hugged.

I slowly turned and walked towards the restaurant. I wonder if I should tell the others…

"Oh Syaoran!" said Sakura as I saw her run outside to me. "I was worried about you."

"Oh…" I said.

"What's up? You're grinning weird," she said as she looked at me.

"Ah… it's nothing," I said. "It's getting cold; let's go inside."

"Okay…" she said, but she still looked at me suspiciously.

"Weren't you mad at me?" I said. She looked away a bit.

"Still?" I said dully.

"W-well, I'll forgive you," she said, slightly blushing. "If you do something for me."

I rolled my eyes. "Alright, what?"

"Say that you love me."

Huh?

"Er…" I said, confused. "I love you?"

"I mean… shout it out," she finally continued. There was a long silence.

"Syaoran?"

"Aw no, Sakura," I groaned. "Don't make me do this. Are you serious?"

She nodded. "If you do it, I'll forgive you!" she said hurriedly.

"Why are you such a child…?!" I moaned as I saw her pout again.

"Do it… stand right there and shout it out," she snapped.

"Fine," I said angrily.

I stood at the spot where Sakura pointed at. Clearly, it was out for the whole world to hear. I hesitated.

"Sakura, I love you…" I murmured.

"Shout it!" she reminded.

"I know!" I said sharply as I gave a rough sigh.

Oh god, please don't let Eriol or Daidouji or _anyone_ hear this…

I took a deep breath.

"SAKURA, I LOVE YOU!" I shouted. Around fifty people walking on the streets turned to look at me, and I'm betting a billion more just heard it.

Sakura was definitely happy. I ran to her, tearing myself from the other people's gazes and holding the weight of embarrassment.

"Me too!" she said happily. "Okay, you're forgiven."

"Okay," I said dully as I took her hand. "Let's hurry and go inside."

We went back in our seats, where even the people inside looked at me. They must have heard me too.

Yamazaki just made it worse.

"Hey Li, was that you who shouted right now?" he said. "Man, talk about committed."

"Shut… up…" I breathed.

"He's so sweet," sighed Mihara.

"You're so lucky, Sakura-chan," said Yanagisawa. Sakura smiled at me.

Then, Eriol and Daidouji came in, holding presents for all of us.

"Hey Li, was that you who shouted a minute ago?" he asked, amused.

My life is _over_...!

**End.**

How was it? Nice? I wanted to show how Sakura and Syaoran were doing on their new relationship, so I made this side story (though in the original plot, Syaroan stays in Hong Kong for quite a while). Ehehe. And you can tell I like the TomoyoxEriol pairing.

And about the epilogue… it won't be mentioned in this story. And by that I mean, it will be mentioned in _another _story of my own (hint, hint). A crossover perhaps? Maybe…! Peel your eyes open for _the other story that I updated._

Other than that, you can all give your final reviews here, as this is officially the last chapter of this story. Thanks to you all who waited patiently for this chapter! If you want to read more romance/drama type stories, read my _The Last Nagori_ or _Hello, Neighbor_ as they have the same genre. Until next time... Ja neh!


	22. A Final Memory

Okay, before you freak out and yell, "Is this a joke? I thought you said it was the END?" Yeah, I thought it was the end too. Heehee. But the truth is, I found this half-finished chapter in one of my old folders and I was really surprised and annoyed that I didn't put it in the original story. It **IS** an important chapter after all (which concentrates on Syaoran's past), but I guess I forgot all about it when I was finishing the story. Nevertheless, I edited it a lot, including my poor grammar and spelling, and of course, finished it. This is actually going to be the true **epilogue **of the story. As a note, about three fourths of the chapter is on a third person point of view, but on Syaoran's perspective. The remaining bits of the chapter are only on **Syaoran's POV**, which you will see below in a bit. Hope you guys enjoy; it's one of my longest chapters, since it's really the end!

**Chapter 22: Special Story II**

**A Final Memory**

It felt like a long day.

On the contrary, I hadn't realized until now that time has passed by so quickly. But maybe because I wanted to return home so bad that I didn't notice. Only today it felt like every second was an hour.

I was impatient to come back, and return to where I once called my personal hell.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

_**Twelve years ago**_

A young Li Syaoran stared at the enormous house that stood in front of him.

"Isn't it beautiful, Syaoran?" asked his mother, Yelan, as she put down a box that contained a set of fragile porcelain.

"I guess…" answered Syaoran. He continued to stare at the new house that he was going to live in from now on, with a feeling of both anger and melancholy inside him.

"Thank you, Fujitaka-san," said Yelan as she unloaded the last cardboard box filled with possessions into the front step of the house.

"Your welcome," said the man she addressed, who closed the van. He was at his mid thirties, with light brown hair and wore glasses.

Fujitaka faced Syaoran, who stepped back a little with caution.

"You'll like it here," said Fujitaka warmly.

He smiled at Syaoran, who didn't smile back. Yelan gave him a disapproving look.

"Forgive me, Fujitaka-san," she said as she placed her hand on Syaoran's shoulder. "He's… really shy."

"I understand." He was still smiling.

Syaoran couldn't help but feel safe from his friendly tone. But he still didn't feel like smiling.

"I think that is all." Yelan looked at the car. "I can't thank you enough for helping us."

"Anytime," said Fujitaka.

"Uncle!" said a voice, high and excited. Syaoran quickly looked around to find the location of the voice.

A little girl, about his age, with short bronze hair and chocolate brown eyes ran to them. She held Fujitaka's hand.

"Oh, Kaou," said Fujitaka. Yelan smiled at Kaou, who smiled right back.

"Hello, little one." Yelan was easily charmed by her.

"Hello!" chirped Kaou.

"This is my niece, Kaou." Fujitaka placed both of his hands on Kaou's shoulders.

"Oh, Syaoran, look," said Yelan. "You made a new friend!"

Syaoran didn't reply, but simply stared when Kaou came to him and offered her hand.

"Hello, there!" she said. "My name is Amamiya Kaou! What's yours?"

Syaoran looked at her hand until she awkwardly pulled it away. He didn't get why she asked him his name; his mother just said it out loud. It annoyed him.

And her being a little too hyper didn't help either.

"May I know your name please?" she tried again brightly. He felt his mother's glare on his back and gave off a brief sigh.

"Li Syaoran." He said it slowly and reluctantly.

"Yay, I made a new friend!" said Kaou happily as she grabbed his hands. Syaoran froze, stunned by her sudden action. Fujitaka and Yelan stepped back to give them the encouragement to talk.

"So she will be staying here for a while?" asked Yelan quietly as both she and Fujitaka watched a bubbly Kaou talk her head off about herself to an uninterested Syaoran.

"Yes and from now on." He sighed sadly. "Her mother and father both passed away when she was three."

"Oh dear, I'm sorry," said Yelan sympathetically. "It must be hard for her."

"It's alright," he said. "She doesn't remember them much, so it's good she doesn't have to live with remembering that tragedy."

"True," she agreed.

"But I am sorry about your husband," he said. "Forgive me, but Nadeshiko told me what had happened."

Yelan smiled at him sadly. "No, it's alright if you knew," she said. "As you can see why Syaoran is not his usual self today… or will be, for some time. Unfortunately for him, he will have to live with experiencing this pain…"

They continued to watch the Kaou talking to Syaoran.

Syaoran didn't like her at all. She was getting on his nerves, and telling her to shut up sounded appealing to him.

But he couldn't blame her for what was happening to his father. He was dying, and Syaoran could do nothing to stop it. Even though Kaou was only trying to make him feel better, he still didn't want much company at the moment.

Fujitaka sensed his discomfort.

"Kaou," he said. "Why don't you go inside and see what your aunt and cousin are up to?"

"Okay," said Kaou as she smiled at Syaoran (who still didn't smile back) one last time and skipped inside the house.

"Well, we'll talk again I presume," said Yelan as she took a box. Syaoran automatically picked up the second one in his arms.

"Yes, please do visit us," said Fujitaka. "Nadeshiko has been eager in seeing you again."

Yelan smiled. "Yes, I am as well. Tell her and Sakura I said hello."

"Will do." Fujitaka went into his own house after he waved.

Both Yelan and Syaoran then walked into the house and saw that almost everything was organized already by the movers. As Syaoran looked around, Yelan placed the boxes in the living room.

Then she walked back to him and knelt in front of him. She placed her hands in his shoulders and said, "Syaoran, I know this is a drastic change for you. But don't worry; everything will be all right."

Syaoran simply stared into her eyes, believing nothing that she had just said.

It was not all right, at all.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Sir, would you like anything?" asked the flight attendant. I looked up at her and gave her a polite smile.

"No, thank you," I said. "I'm fine." She smiled back and walked to the other passengers to talk to them.

I placed my book on my lap so I could stretch. I kind of regretted not taking my private plane, but I guess this was nice too. It wasn't too quiet or loud.

I looked back at my book and smiled again. I wondered how many times I have read it up until now; I lost track after the tenth time.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Syaoran would never cry in public, even in front of his father's grave, who died a week after they moved.

His mother naturally cried; she loved him deeply. Syaoran loved him too, but he didn't want to show his weakness. He was strong; no one was going to see him fall.

It was his only way to keep himself from dying.

The sky was cold and dark, gloomy as if it mourned for his father's death as well.

Syaoran stared at the ground that covered his father's coffin, with flowers everywhere near the tombstone. As everyone, including his relatives and his father's close friends, started to depart, Yelan came to him to take his hand and lead him to the car.

But he moved away. He was filled with anger and remorse, and going home didn't make him feel any better. He had a strange hope that his father would suddenly appear and apologize in coming late; and that the grave belonged to someone else.

"Syaoran, let's return home," she whispered as she tried to grab his hand again, but he wretched his hand away.

"Syaoran!" she snapped impatiently. "Do not give me an attitude!"

Her words pierced him like a spear. What was wrong with this woman? Did she understand nothing?

"It's going to get dark soon!" she continued. "Give me—!"

"Why did we have to move when he was going to die anyway?" he shouted suddenly. Yelan stared at her son, stunned by his words. Some people turned to stare at the sudden shout, but he didn't care.

"We could've taken better care of him if we didn't have to waste our time, moving our stupid stuff!" he cried and he ran off to the opposite direction of the car.

"Syaoran! Come back!"

Syaoran ignored his mother's yells and continued to run until he ran out of breath. He looked back and saw nothing; he probably went as far as a mile.

Of course his mother wasn't going to chase him; he was going to come back eventually.

He finally sank to his knees, and the tears poured out of his face. It was okay now; no one would be there to see him. He slowly placed his hands on the ground as he cried, grabbing at the soil.

His father was dead, and he moved to a place that knew nothing of him. Now, he just felt like dying.

"Hey… why are you crying?"

His head shot up with surprise. He didn't sense anyone coming, but suddenly, a girl was there, watching him with a curious, but caring expression on her face. He stumbled as he tried to stand up; she didn't laugh when he almost tripped.

Instead, she slowly walked to him until they were a foot apart. "What's wrong?" she asked in a soft voice. She had long, brown hair that went down to her waist, and brilliant emerald eyes.

Syaoran stared at her. Who was this girl? He hesitated before he answered.

"My father… he…" His voice broke as he fought to push his tears back. The girl understood at whatever expression his face was giving.

"Was this your father's funeral?"

"…Yes…"

"Here…" She had stepped closer to him to give him a handkerchief. Syaoran gave her a bewildered look.

"What's…?"

"Wipe your tears with this… it will help."

To his surprise, he obeyed automatically. He wished that it would cure his pain. It didn't, but he did feel a bit better.

"Thank you…"

"Feel better?" she asked.

"A little," he answered truthfully.

"You can keep it for as long as you want."

"Thank you."

She beamed at him. "Tee hee…"

He felt himself smiling. This girl… he never met anyone quite like her.

"My name is Kinomoto Sakura," she introduced herself. She didn't offer her hand or anything. She merely just smiled at him.

"Li Syaoran," he blurted. It felt so easy talking to her than anyone he has ever talked to; easier than that _Kaou_ girl.

"Sorry you had to see that," he continued. "I probably looked like an idiot right now."

"No." She shook her head. "It's okay to cry once in a while."

"Huh…"

Then he saw Fujitaka walking toward them. Weirdly enough, he didn't feel like running away.

"Syaoran… I think it's about time you should head back now," he said as he reached them. His voice sounded clearly somber. "Your mother was worried about you."

Syaoran nodded once, swallowing.

Fujitaka gave him another sad smile. "I'm sorry about your father," he said quietly.

Syaoran didn't reply, but looked down at the ground. Fujitaka then looked at Sakura and frowned a little.

"Sakura, you weren't supposed to wander this far," he said; the tone of his voice didn't change. "_I_ was worried about you."

"Sorry Daddy," she said as she hugged him. "I won't do it again."

Syaoran was a little surprised by this revelation. She didn't really look like her father.

Fujitaka chuckled and patted her head. "Alright now, let's all head back."

Syaoran followed behind as they walked back to the parking lot, saying nothing. He only looked up to see Sakura looking at him sympathetically.

She gave him a look, which he didn't need words for to understand: _You'll be all right._

And for once, he believed.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

_How are you so far? I'm missing you already. I bet this sounds so cheesy right now, but still, I can't help feeling this way, even if you are coming tomorrow._

Hope you're doing well. You'd better be eating right and staying healthy up until now! I don't want to see a zombie at the airport!

_Love, _

…

I chuckled after I read the latest e-mail I received just yesterday. Somehow reading it just made me feel better, even though it sounded a little annoying… and yeah, somewhat _cheesy_.

But it won't really matter much longer.

I took the pillow that the attendant that I finally accepted so that she would leave me alone. The plane wasn't going to land for the next six hours… might as well use the time to get some good sleep.

I closed my eyes and sighed.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Syaoran watched a bed of peonies move along the quiet wind at the backyard of his house.

It was almost three months after his father's death and, his life was slowly turning to be normal. His mother didn't scold him for running away; rather, she actually apologized to him, for not understanding what he felt. He forgave her, of course, because he knew she was only human.

"Syaoran!"

He turned to see Kaou practically running to him, carrying a bag, with Sakura walking calmly behind, smiling, though somehow it had a sad tone to it.

"Yes?" he said warily. He watched Kaou catch her breath for a few seconds until her regular hyper self kicked in again.

"Syaoran! We found something incredible! Come with us!" she said as she grabbed his hand. Syaoran looked at Sakura for a reason, but she shook her head.

He couldn't believe that he actually made some friends since he moved to Tokyo. Sakura was more patient in making friends with him; it was as if she knew his discomfort. Kaou, on the other hand, was eager to be his _best_ friend. They were pretty close themselves, Kaou and Sakura; Sakura seemed a little more mature though.

Then there was Tomoyo, whose mother was also close friends with Nadeshiko. He didn't really know her much; she only visited once in a while, but Sakura told him that she was a wonderful person.

They walked for nearly ten minutes, until Syaoran noticed that they were near some sort of high school. What was this…? Seijyu?

But Kaou's voice slightly sidetracked him. "Look, look!" she said as she pointed.

Syaoran looked at where she was pointing to, and stared in awe. It was enormous cherry blossom tree, bigger than any tree he has ever seen, and the most beautiful. He couldn't speak for a few seconds.

"It's beautiful." Sakura spoke as though she had read his mind.

She walked around the field to look at the flowers as Syaoran and Kaou sat at base of the tree trunk.

"It's really pretty, isn't it?" she asked.

Syaoran nodded. "Yeah…"

He looked at her and she blushed a little in response. "Well… er…" she started.

"What is it?" he said, bemused. He saw her grip on the bag that she had carried around with her before.

"Um… Syaoran… do you know when a teddy bear's birthday is?" she asked. Syaoran shook his head.

"No… when is it?"

Kaou smiled. "When you put a ribbon to it and give it a name… it becomes his birthday."

"Ah…" he said. He didn't know where she was getting at.

"And… when you give it to someone you love…" she continued. "And they name the bear after you… eh never mind." She started blushing again.

"Huh?" He was still confused.

She turned to face him, her face still flushed. "Syaoran… can I give you a teddy bear?"

"Wh-what…?" He stared at her.

Then she smiled hugely. "A teddy bear!" she said as she gave him the bag. "Here's a ribbon too!"

"Er… thanks," he said as he opened the bag to see a brown teddy bear with a green ribbon.

"Give it a name!" she suddenly urged.

"Uh…" He didn't know what to say.

"You want to name it…?" She sounded a little pushy and he didn't understand why she was doing that.

"Er… I don't want to give it a name…" he said slowly.

She frowned. "Why not?" she said sadly.

"Uhm… maybe later," he said. Then she sighed.

"Won't you name it after me?" she asked, her voice barely audible.

"Why would I—?" he started. Then he looked at her face and froze. She took a deep breath.

"Because… I love you," she said slowly. His mouth fell open slightly.

At that moment, Sakura came to them and gave them each a crown of flowers that she had been working on. Kaou mumbled that she wanted to look for flowers too and ran off to the field where the flowers were. Syaoran sat where he was, immobilized with shock.

Did he just get confessed? He couldn't believe it.

Sakura sat next to him this time, fixing her crown. "Nice weather today, isn't it?" she asked cheerfully. It took him a while to process what she said.

"Yeah…" he said finally as he kept staring after Kaou. When Sakura looked at the bear, she stared for a brief moment, as though she was surprised to see it. Then she quickly composed her face and touched the bear's ear.

"Ooh, what a cute bear," she said. "What's his name?"

"I haven't really thought of a name for her yet," he said without thinking.

"He's a girl? Oh, I'm sorry." She smiled, and he felt something hot grow on his cheeks. He quickly stared at the ground, so that she wouldn't see his face. Was he blushing?

"Um… Syaoran…"

He looked up again when he heard her call him. She started to flush.

"I… I think I…" she started. She hesitated.

Syaoran was completely distracted by her now. Was it a personal thing? But she just sighed and placed the finished crown of flowers on his head.

"This looks good on you," she complimented. "Don't you think?"

He stared at her. What was she really going to say? Unless it was like Kaou's…

He blushed again, and shook his head.

"Is there something wrong?" he forced himself to say. He couldn't help but feel like there was something that was bothering her; her smiles weren't as bright as before.

"Oh… my mother is getting sick," she confessed. "It's getting me a little worried."

Syaoran couldn't help but feel sorry for her. He wondered if her concern was the same with his when his father was dying.

"Like you told me before," he said quietly. "You'll be all right."

Sakura nodded and smiled grimly. "Yeah… I hope you're right," she whispered.

"Hey guys! Let's take a picture!" said Nadeshiko, Sakura's mother and Kaou's aunt, as she walked to them. Syaoran was surprised to see her here. Didn't Sakura say she was sick?

He noticed a young man, around seventeen, carrying a basket that Syaoran presumed to be containing lunch. Another young girl about their age followed him; she had long wavy black hair and dark eyes, the color that Syaoran couldn't name. They both followed behind Nadeshiko.

"Hey Toya! Hey Tomoyo-chan!" said Kaou. Toya glared at Syaoran as they approached closer; Syaoran glared straight back at him. Tomoyo and Kaou giggled. Sakura, on the other hand, didn't notice.

"Mother… you shouldn't be out like this," she said worriedly.

"It's all right Sakura," said her mother as she stroked her cheek. "I feel fine."

Sakura could only give her a half smile.

"Isn't that the really _old_ camera, Auntie?" said Kaou skeptically as she eyed the camera.

Nadeshiko grinned. "Yup," she said. "Your father thought I might break the new one, so I'm going to have to stick with this." She sighed. "Good thing too, I almost dropped this when I tripped walking on the rocks over there."

"There are no rocks," said Kaou and Toya flatly in unison. Nadeshiko ignored them.

"Come on guys," she called as she positioned the camera. "Get together."

So Syaoran, Sakura, and Kaou huddled together for the picture. It was a little awkward for Syaoran to be next to Kaou, so Sakura stood between them instead. The picture was going to be black and white, but they didn't mind.

"Okay, why don't we have a picnic here?" suggested Nadeshiko when they finished taking pictures. "Tomoyo came over and brought chicken sandwiches that her mother made." Sakura seemed to smile more after hearing that.

"Ooh, and let's all say scary stories!" said Kaou as they prepared lunch.

"Uh… let's not," said Sakura nervously. Syaoran raised an eyebrow as Tomoyo giggled again.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"_Passengers, we will be arriving to our destination in ten minutes." _

I slowly opened my eyes and looked around groggily. Then I looked at my watch to see what time it was.

It was nearly two in the afternoon. Wow, I really passed out.

As I stretched, I felt the plane suddenly shift and rumble; we were almost there. My suit was already crumpled from the way I slept. Meh.

"Please remain seated," reminded some attendant who placed her hand on a little boy's eager shoulder.

I put my letter and book away in a bag and closed my eyes again.

I felt really tired for some strange reason…probably because I didn't sleep at all the night before.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Syaoran never thought he would get his first crush when he was only ten years old. Nor did he think anyone would have _him_ as a crush.

Maybe that was why he didn't really respond to his feelings every time Sakura was with him. When she was near him, he would feel his heart beat faster than normal, his palms turn sweaty, and the temperature of his cheeks rise. The symptoms grew worse every time he met her.

He never knew what this feeling was. Until… it was too late.

"_What?_" he said, shocked. He was suddenly standing upright from the couch when he was folding laundry with his mother.

"Yes, Syaoran," said Yelan as she calmly folded a towel. "The Kinomoto family will be moving to Osaka. Nadeshiko caught pneumonia and moving there will make her feel better."

"When…?" Syaoran could only whisper.

Yelan hesitated. "Tomorrow," she finally said.

Then he understood why Sakura and Kaou were avoiding him for the past week, why he was told by Fujitaka or Nadeshiko that they were busy, and why there were so many trucks in front of their house. Sakura and Kaou _would have_ told him everything the moment they saw him.

Syaoran ran out of the house before Yelan had said a word. He bolted across the street and saw, to his surprise, Sakura sitting on the steps of her house, reading a book.

"Kinomoto!" he called as he reached her. She looked up with a mixture of delight and sadness on her face.

"Sakura," she reminded him. He tried to ignore her.

"My mother said you were moving," he said, as he caught his breath. "Is that true?"

Sakura looked at him sadly. "Yes," she answered slowly.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded. She sighed as she stood up.

"Because, I didn't want to see your face like that," she murmured.

"But, Kinomoto—I mean… Sakura," he said slowly. "I—"

"I'm going to miss you, Syaoran," she said suddenly. And then she smiled. "Why don't you read this book? I thought it was good, and you won't have to be so bored after we leave."

She handed him a green covered book, and its title read, _Cardcaptors._ But he pushed the book in her hands.

"You don't have to go," he said. He sounded almost pleading, and Sakura's eyes tightened, as if she was about to cry. But they relaxed as she tightened his fingers on the book with her own hands, giving him a sympathetic smile.

"Goodbye, Syaoran," she whispered. And then she turned around and went back into her house.

Syaoran stood there, motionless with pain and sadness within him.

The girl that he fell in love with was going away forever.

But he wasn't going to let it happen. He had to tell her… _his_ feelings.

To make things worse, Yelan forbid him to go out the next morning. Blind by his frustration, he didn't get why she would suddenly do that, given a stupid excuse that he ran outside without permission the previous day.

When he tried to run out anyway, she ordered her maids to lock him in his room. The maids only obeyed her reluctantly; they didn't understand why she was acting this way either.

He was lying on his bed for what seemed like hours until a maid knocked at his door and told him that his _friend _came to visit. He sat up almost abruptly, holding a tiny hope that it could have been Sakura, or Kaou at least.

Thinking about Kaou made him nervous; he felt guilty that he didn't get to give her his answer yet.

His hope was vain though, for Tomoyo came at the door.

"Daidouji?" he said, feeling surprised and disappointed at the same time.

"Li, what are you doing here?" She frowned, sounding disappointed as well. "Did you get into trouble?"

He looked down. "I don't know," he muttered.

She sighed. "Sakura-chan and Kaou-chan can't wait for you."

He looked at her carefully, trying not to glare at her. Tomoyo saw the teddy bear.

"Did you name it?" she asked, her voice solemn as she examined it.

"No… I don't think I can," he whispered.

She shook her head. "You can name it any name you want," she said slowly. "You should name it after the person you love the most. It would be more fitting, don't you think? Even if that person didn't give it to you."

He stared at her, but she only nodded, smiling. He wondered if she had ever had this situation before, or if she was just very observant.

He looked out at the window to see the Kinomoto family go inside the car, with both Kaou and Sakura hesitating. Kaou was a little teary, but Sakura had an unreadable expression on her face. And Syaoran realized at once what name he should give the bear.

If only he could meet _her_ one last time. Just like Tomoyo said… she couldn't wait for him. So he would have to make sure she didn't have to.

He suddenly got on his feet and almost ran to the door.

"Li?"

"I'm not going to make her wait for me," he muttered, and then he bolted out of his room.

"Syaoran! Why are you—?" started Yelan as he reached her downstairs.

"Mother… where is she? Where did you take her?" he demanded. He thought for a second that maybe she wouldn't understand him.

But she did. "She's gone," she said. "She had to, it's for the best."

"Why are you doing this?" he nearly yelled at her. "What's wrong with you?! You didn't even let me see her off…!"

"I know it's hard but—"she started sadly.

"You don't know anything," he spat as he glared at the door. He never thought that he would be angry at his mother this much.

"I'm so sorry, Syaoran." She looked almost guilty, but he couldn't take it anymore.

"I hate you mother!" he shouted as he ran through the door, out of the house. He heard her call out, "Syaoran!" but he ignored her, just like he did at the funeral.

The car had already taken off, but he still ran for it. He didn't like his bad habit of having too much hope in things, but it was the only way that would make him feel better.

The car came at the intersection and the light came to his favor. He was only half a mile away, and if the car was going to turn, they would see him and stop. He felt almost triumphant… he was going to tell the girl he loved his feelings.

But for some reason, he also felt something strange. As if… something bad was going to happen. He tried to shake it off as he ran towards them, until he found out in horror that it was too late.

The car turned right, heading towards him, when a truck suddenly appeared out of nowhere and slammed right at the middle. The windows from both cars exploded and shattered everywhere, pieces of metal flew across the street, and the tires screeched and wailed futilely on the pavement. The car rolled twice, and stayed on its side.

Everything happened in about a few seconds, yet Syaoran saw and absorbed everything in his eyes.

He stood in shock as he heard screams from the locals.

"Somebody, call the ambulance!" someone shouted.

Everything was wrong… it wasn't supposed to happen this way. He felt as if he was living in a total nightmare.

And then… his legs moved on their own accord and he sprinted towards the crash site, ignoring everyone else, trying not to look at the blood that covered the front window of the car.

He ran until he saw a familiar body, crawling towards him. His heart sputtered as he ran faster and realized that it was Kaou, bloody and almost mangled. He slowly picked her up and saw blood pumping out of her forehead. _"This isn't happening,"_ he thought.

But despite all the blood and grotesque wounds on her face and body, the expression on her face looked elated.

"Syaoran… I had to see you again," she rasped. "And you're here…"

"Stop talking," he said, his voice breaking as he watched her shirt slowly staining. "There's so much blood…"

"I'm so sorry… you're probably mad at me…" she whispered, her voice getting slurred. "I didn't tell you anything…"

"What…?" said Syaoran. He couldn't understand why she was saying this.

"I just wanted you to know… that I know that love won't change," she said. "And even though mine will be unrequited…"

"Amamiya…"

"I'm sorry," she apologized. "Don't be mad…"

"I'm not mad," he said hurriedly. "Just please, don't die!"

"I'm… going to be okay!" she insisted, her voice turning soft. "Don't worry… about me! Just please… be happy…"

But her eyes unexpectedly rolled back to her head and her body limped in his arms.

"Amamiya… Amamiya!" Syaoran shouted as he looked for a pulse. "Open your eyes…!"

He shook her, but she didn't respond.

He couldn't listen to the people yelling over him, and the sirens from the ambulance cars. He didn't see the blood that was all over his clothes and hands. Because by then he had closed his eyes and screamed.

He couldn't save her… or Sakura. It was his entire fault. Why was this happening to him?

When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to see that he had been lying down on a bed. He quickly tried to sit up, but strong hands were on his shoulders and he fell back down.

He looked at the hands' owners to see his mother looking stricken, with tear stained marks on her cheeks.

"Mother… where am I?" he mumbled as he looked around. His clothes have been changed, and the blood was gone. He was in his room.

"You… fainted when they took Kaou away," she whispered. "I thought—because of the blood all over you—that you…" She couldn't finish as she wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.

"Where's Amamiya? Sakura?" he said with a vain hope that everything was just a dream.

She didn't respond, and instead, touched his face with her trembling hand.

"I'm sorry, Syaoran," she whispered. Her words made his stomach feel empty.

"I… see," he said finally as he looked at her. He tried to sound calm. "Can I… sleep for a bit? I'm… actually really tired…"

"Sure, sweetie," she said. "I'll leave you alone for a while." When she left the room, closing the door, he placed his arm over his eyes and let the tears stream down his cheeks.

Everyone was dead, and he couldn't do anything about it.

If only he had listened to his mother, who, even though she wouldn't have known, could have saved him from that tortured memory he would have to live through everyday.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

_**Eight years later**_

An older Syaoran took a fresh cigarette and put it in his mouth. He needed another stress reducer; a wannabe punk had just tried to act like a bully on him in front of the cafeteria and he simply responded by breaking his arm.

He couldn't believe why idiots like him were so obsessed with control. Was he trying to score with a girl or something? Maybe he wanted that new student he heard who just transferred, to like him.

Perhaps, but he messed with the wrong guy.

He sat by a café and continued to smoke, looking around now and then to see if Meiling was going to pounce on him. If he saw her, he would immediately go to his car and drive home. He had enough of her annoying voice.

And then he saw someone he didn't recognize. A young woman with short brown hair in his school's uniform was crossing the street on skates. He was a bit annoyed; she looked like a nerd.

Only at first, until he saw her _brilliant emerald eyes_. And suddenly, he felt himself standing up from his chair, dropping his cigarette. He heard a voice in the back of his head say _"Is it possible?"_

While she was crossing, he spotted a car going straight at her, with no intention to stop. And he found himself running at her.

It was_ that_ girl. Something about that girl was making him wanting to save her. Who was she?

But he knew for sure that she was stupid; she was rooted to the spot as the car was coming towards her.

And without thinking, he had his arms around her waist and was pushing her across the sidewalk as the car shot past them. The girl looked up at him and he saw her eyes, those beautiful green eyes that made him short of a breath.

She was surprised to see him as much as he was, but it was a different kind of surprise; she didn't think a person like him would save her.

And he made himself realize that she couldn't be the girl that he knew. _"She's dead,"_ he reminded himself quietly so that she wouldn't hear him.

He fixed his face before she did. "You okay?" he said gruffly as they both stood up.

"Y-yes," she stammered. He quickly took out another cigarette. Her voice sounded like _hers_ too.

"You freaking idiot," he snapped. He tried to sound harsh, to cover his remorse. "Why did you just stand there?"

He walked towards his car until he heard her say, "Wait!"

Just hearing her voice made him want to scream again. "What?" he snarled unpredictably. She cringed away from him, and he regretted saying that to her.

"Thank you…" she whispered. His free hand clenched into a fist in his pocket as he heard her speak.

"Next time do yourself a favor and move those damn legs… it could really help the people around here," he muttered, hating himself. The girl said nothing and he turned away again.

"People these days can't drive," he murmured angrily as he walked to his car, forcing himself not to turn back to her.

When he got into the driver's seat, he threw his unused cigarette out of the window, and placed his hands on his hair as he rested his head on the wheel. He slowly turned his head to see if she was still there; she was slowly walking away, her back to him. Then he turned back and pressed his face on the steering wheel.

Sakura was gone, he knew that. There was no possible way that she would have ever come back.

He clenched his teeth to prevent himself from crying and turned on the engine as he straightened up. He wasn't going to fall just yet.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Sir?" a person poked my arm and I opened my eyes to see a woman, looking concerned. "We've landed quite some time ago."

"Oh, shit," I murmured as I stood up. Everyone in the plane was gone.

I overslept… great.

"Thanks," I said hurriedly as I ran out of the steps and into the entrance of the building. I managed to find my entire luggage and dragged everything downstairs to the waiting area. Arms full of bags and suitcases, I avoided the slow escalators and ran right at the stairs. I knew a lot of people staring at me, but I didn't really mind.

As I reached the waiting area, I managed to see my party, waiting for me.

I first saw an older, yet still enthusiastic Yamazaki, who first spotted me and yelled out loud, startling nearly everyone, including myself.

I reminded myself to punch him when we got home.

Daidouji was there, with her pleasant smile, and my other friend, Hiiragizawa who grinned at me and winked. They were holding hands and they didn't look like they changed much.

The girls, Yanagisawa (with longer hair and now wearing contacts), Mihara (now wearing a ponytail instead of braided pigtails for once), and Sasaki (with shorter and curlier hair) all clapped their hands with joy. Everyone looked older, but it felt like time has never passed since I left.

I didn't really pay attention to any of them, however, as I looked straight for the person who I craved to see for the past four years.

_She_ was beautiful, as always, with her (still short, but slightly longer) brown hair turning ochre from the sun rays, and stunning emerald eyes as they flashed to me. She wore a light green summer dress (which I think was from Daidouji). She smiled, though there was a trace of annoyance on her face.

Everyone kept distance around me, because she was right before me, and we both breathed in relief.

"You're late, Syaoran," she said as she wrapped her arms around my neck when I reached her.

"Sorry, Sakura," I said as I lowered my head. "Overslept." We both chuckled as our lips met, making everyone sigh.

"Okay, party in _my_ house!" roared Yamazaki, startling everyone again. I grimaced at him. He still hasn't changed.

Both he and Hiiragizawa helped me with my luggage and we all walked to Tomoyo's limousine. Hiiragizawa and Yamazaki put away my stuff for me in the trunk. I looked at the limo skeptically as Sakura shrugged.

"More room," she explained as we all got in the car. I held Sakura's hand as we both sat next to each other.

"Actually, I was thinking," I murmured as I moved some of her bangs away with my free hand so that I could see her eyes. "…if we can go to a restaurant."

"You're hungry?" Sakura frowned at the thought of poor service at the plane.

Daidouji looked at me for a brief minute. Comprehension flickered on her face and she told her driver to take us to a restaurant that I didn't recognize (I suspected that it was a fancy one, which was even better).

"Well, not really," I said. I put my free hand in my pocket and my fingers closed around a small box that contained the promise of keeping Sakura in being mine forever. She looked baffled when I gave her a reassured smile. I kissed her hand that I entwined with mine.

"I just want to try something."

**The End.**

O…kay, seriously that's the end. **Seriously!** Ahaha. Hoped you enjoyed, and I look forward in seeing your reviews! I'll update my _The Last Nagori_ soon so keep an eye on that one too!


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